About a week ago we learned that a serious problem had occurred in one of NASA’s most iconic telescopes, Hubble. This equipment has entered safe mode due to an internal computer failure. Despite its age, this is still a very special telescope for humanity, as it has given us some of the most important astronomical discoveries in history.
Now NASA has a plan to recover it, but for now it’s all theory, will it work in practice?
Hubble is sick but not dead!
The Space Telescope Payload Computer shut down its operations on June 13 and automatically went into safe mode. This means that in theory the telescope is still working, however, it will not turn on or perform operations until the computer is repaired.
Almost 1 month later Hubble still shows no sign of life despite the NASA have tried to repair it from Earth. The actions taken by the space agency first tried to restart the computer, without success, and tried to replace it with another computer that Hubble owns.
As we have already mentioned, inside the space telescope there are two identical computers, one is the operational computer and the second is the computer that will come into operation if the first one fails. Now, the first one failed and the second one doesn't start.
47-year-old technology refuses to go back to business
NASA ran into two major difficulties when trying to repair Hubble. The first has to do with the age of the components, the second, of course, with the distance.
So we talk about a computer created in 1974, that is, technology with more than 47 years.
There are facts that are still surprising about these space devices. One of the most admirable is the time this telescope has been in operation without ever having malfunctioned. This is the most important telescope in the world.
In addition to its age, we have to consider that this telescope is not installed on top of a mountain or in the middle of a desert on planet Earth.
The telescope is in space, orbiting our planet. So the solution is to repair it remotely or, ultimately, send astronauts to replace the broken hardware.
However, there is a fact that complicates this second option, that is, NASA no longer has a space shuttle that has already made it possible to carry out this type of repairs in space.
But then what is the theoretical solution found?
As announced by NASA experts will try to turn on the Hubble backup comannd unit / cientific data format (cu / sdf).
This component is responsible for sending and formatting commands and data in the telescope. In principle, it can help activate the computer's backup memory, thus replacing memory that is theoretically believed to be defective.
NASA claims that last week it tested this procedure in field simulations to verify feasibility. So there is hope that the theory will work in practice.
If everything goes as planned, the change planned for Hubble could happen next week after completing the corresponding testing procedures. In other words, the agency will have to carry out detailed risk assessments and procedures before any Hubble commands can be executed. One wrong step and this telescope is lost forever.
For now, the Hubble will continue in safe mode and without sending us any scientific observations.
As we know, this telescope is expected to be active until at least 2040. Before that, however, what will be the most advanced telescope ever produced, the James Webb, Hubble's replacement.
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