By Hana El-Badrawy
To solve this problem, scientists in the 1940s such as Lyman Spitzer, dreamt of basing telescopes in outer space. The dream was big, yet science is capable of solving the largest issues.
For almost fifty years, aerospace scientists, engineers, contractors and others specialized in that field collaborated. A partnership between worldwide institutions was also created, such as the European Space Agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
.
On April 25, 1990, the dream came true and astronauts launched the first telescope based in outer space: Hubble. Hubble had giant measures; a diameter of 2.4 meters, a length of 15.9 meters and a weight of 11 tones! The new magnificent creation had countless potentials. Exploring our galaxy, measuring the size of the universe, calculating the age of the components of the solar system? Been there… Revealing the truth behind the starts, asteroids and even life? Done that! In addition, Hubble traveled outer space very fast; with a speed of 28,000km/h.
Hubble had it all and certainly proved the importance of outer space telescopes to science. With
the pictures that Hubble sends us, we are capable of seeing the entire universe. Although the pictures are initially obtained in black and white, their multiplication and color filtering makes them clear and interesting to observe.
Year after year, NASA welcomed new space telescopes such as the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Yet, as the NASA family grew, disadvantages appeared in expenses and innovation as well.
If a telescope is in outer space, how could it be upgraded every once in a while? If the telescope malfunctions, how could it be fixed from terrestrial sources? Such
questions ought to be answered soon, as Hubble’s expiry date is approaching. In 2004, the telescope is predicted to shut down and thus enter the Earth’s atmosphere and blow up. Will the invention’s end generate a catastrophic event on planet Earth?