Think you can save the Hubble Space Telescope? NASA wants to know.
摘要
NASA发布信息征询书，寻求商业公司就哈勃空间望远镜的轨道提升、维护或受控处置提出方案，回复截止11月30日。哈勃在轨已36年，2002年航天飞机任务后未再提升轨道，2009年最后一次维护飞行也未进行轨道抬升，此后望远镜高度持续下降，若无干预预计将于本世纪30年代初中期再入大气层。NASA希望了解企业当前及近期捕获哈勃并将其提升至至少600公里轨道、提升性能
The Hubble Space Telescope still shines in the eyes of astronomers after 36 years in orbit, but it is not as nimble as it once was. Left alone, the observatory will plunge back into the atmosphere in the early-to-mid-2030s, closing the book on one of the most famous scientific instruments of the century.
NASA last raised the orbit of Hubble in 2002, when the Space Shuttle Columbia visited the observatory for a servicing mission. The final shuttle servicing flight in 2009 did not reboost the telescope's orbit, and with the retirement of the shuttle fleet two years later, Hubble has steadily lost altitude with no way to stave off eventual destruction.
The space agency released a Request For Information (RFI) on Thursday asking commercial companies for ideas on how to reboost, service, or a controlled disposal of Hubble. Responses are due November 30. Specifically, NASA is looking for information about companies' current and near-term capabilities for capturing Hubble and boosting it to an altitude of at least 373 miles (600 km), enhancing the telescope's performance through, or guiding Hubble to a controlled reentry.
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