Hubble telescope computer problems solved | NOS

Hubble Space Telescope should be back up and running soon. according to NASA the problems with the telescope’s computer have been resolved.

The Hubble could not be used since June 13th due to the faulty on-board computer. Solutions were devised from Earth, such as restarting the computer and switching to other memory modules, but without success.

With a series of commands it is now possible to activate a backup computer of the Hubble. The US space agency said that if everything continues to work well, astronomical observations with the telescope could be resumed soon.

1.5 million observations

The Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990. Since then, more than 1.5 million observations have been made with it. The Hubble was serviced five times, but those maintenance missions ended when the space shuttle retired. Since then, the telescope has regularly encountered problems.

In addition, the telescope falls very slowly back to Earth. Depending on solar activity, which can accelerate that process, Hubble is expected to return to the atmosphere sometime between 2028 and 2040. The successor will be launched later this year or early next year: the James Webb Telescope, which can look even further into the universe than the Hubble.

Hubble was initially “near-sighted” after its launch in 1990, but after a repair it showed beautiful images of the universe:

–