Before April 24, 1990, seeing photos of space from space was not an option. Since then however, as spectators we’ve seen some photos that are nearly unimaginable. Why is that date so special? It was the date the Hubble Space Telescope was launched into space, making it a bit more than 25 years old.
To celebrate the Hubble’s 25th birthday, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is opening its doors to the public for Explore@NASAGoddard Day on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, this year’s Explore@NASAGoddard will feature the theme “Celebrating Hubble and the Spirit of Exploration.” During its time in orbit, Hubble has helped to answer some of the most compelling astronomical questions of our time and uncovered mysteries we never knew existed. Investigating everything from black holes to planets around other stars, Hubble has changed the face of astronomy, ushering in a new chapter of humanity’s exploration of the universe. Today, Hubble continues to provide views of cosmic wonders never before seen and is at the forefront of many new discoveries. In addition to highlighting Hubble, all areas of Goddard’s research – Earth science, heliophysics, planetary science, astrophysics and engineering and technology – will be presented as each discipline plays a critical part in the agency’s ongoing journey to reach new heights, reveal the unknown and advance scientific understanding for the benefit of humankind.”
Here are some facts about the telescope:
- Hubble has made more than 1.2 million observations since its mission began in 1990.
- Astronomers using Hubble data have published more than 12,800 scientific papers, making it one of the most productive scientific instruments ever built.
- Hubble does not travel to stars, planets or galaxies. It takes pictures of them as it whirls around Earth at about 17,000 mph.
- Hubble has traveled more than 3 billion miles along a circular low Earth orbit currently about 340 miles in altitude.
- Hubble has no thrusters. To change pointing angles, it uses Newton’s third law by spinning its wheels in the opposite direction. It turns at about the speed of a minute hand on a clock, taking 15 minutes to turn 90 degrees.
- Hubble has the pointing accuracy of .007 arc seconds, which is like being able to shine a laser beam on a dime 200 miles away.
- Outside the haze of our atmosphere, Hubble can see astronomical objects with an angular size of 0.05 arc seconds, which is like seeing a pair of fireflies in Tokyo from your home in Maryland.
- Hubble has peered back into the very distant past, to locations more than 13.4 billion light years from Earth.
- The Hubble archive contains more than 100 Terabytes, and Hubble science data processing generates about 10 Terabytes of new archive data per year.
- Hubble weighed about 24,000 pounds at launch and currently weighs about 27,000 pounds following the final servicing mission in 2009 – on the order of two full-grown African elephants.
- Hubble’s primary mirror is 2.4 meters (7 feet, 10.5 inches) across.
- Hubble is 13.3 meters (43.5 feet) long — the length of a large school bus.
For more about the celebration, visit http://hubble25th.org/.
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Follow us on Twitter for military science and technology updates!
Disclaimer: Re-published content may have been edited for length and clarity. The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense. For other than authorized activities, such as, military exchanges and Morale, Welfare and Recreation sites, the Department of Defense does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. Such links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this DoD website.
from Armed with Science http://ift.tt/1Flme7K
Before April 24, 1990, seeing photos of space from space was not an option. Since then however, as spectators we’ve seen some photos that are nearly unimaginable. Why is that date so special? It was the date the Hubble Space Telescope was launched into space, making it a bit more than 25 years old.
To celebrate the Hubble’s 25th birthday, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is opening its doors to the public for Explore@NASAGoddard Day on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, this year’s Explore@NASAGoddard will feature the theme “Celebrating Hubble and the Spirit of Exploration.” During its time in orbit, Hubble has helped to answer some of the most compelling astronomical questions of our time and uncovered mysteries we never knew existed. Investigating everything from black holes to planets around other stars, Hubble has changed the face of astronomy, ushering in a new chapter of humanity’s exploration of the universe. Today, Hubble continues to provide views of cosmic wonders never before seen and is at the forefront of many new discoveries. In addition to highlighting Hubble, all areas of Goddard’s research – Earth science, heliophysics, planetary science, astrophysics and engineering and technology – will be presented as each discipline plays a critical part in the agency’s ongoing journey to reach new heights, reveal the unknown and advance scientific understanding for the benefit of humankind.”
Here are some facts about the telescope:
- Hubble has made more than 1.2 million observations since its mission began in 1990.
- Astronomers using Hubble data have published more than 12,800 scientific papers, making it one of the most productive scientific instruments ever built.
- Hubble does not travel to stars, planets or galaxies. It takes pictures of them as it whirls around Earth at about 17,000 mph.
- Hubble has traveled more than 3 billion miles along a circular low Earth orbit currently about 340 miles in altitude.
- Hubble has no thrusters. To change pointing angles, it uses Newton’s third law by spinning its wheels in the opposite direction. It turns at about the speed of a minute hand on a clock, taking 15 minutes to turn 90 degrees.
- Hubble has the pointing accuracy of .007 arc seconds, which is like being able to shine a laser beam on a dime 200 miles away.
- Outside the haze of our atmosphere, Hubble can see astronomical objects with an angular size of 0.05 arc seconds, which is like seeing a pair of fireflies in Tokyo from your home in Maryland.
- Hubble has peered back into the very distant past, to locations more than 13.4 billion light years from Earth.
- The Hubble archive contains more than 100 Terabytes, and Hubble science data processing generates about 10 Terabytes of new archive data per year.
- Hubble weighed about 24,000 pounds at launch and currently weighs about 27,000 pounds following the final servicing mission in 2009 – on the order of two full-grown African elephants.
- Hubble’s primary mirror is 2.4 meters (7 feet, 10.5 inches) across.
- Hubble is 13.3 meters (43.5 feet) long — the length of a large school bus.
For more about the celebration, visit http://hubble25th.org/.
Follow HDIAC on Twitter
Follow us on Twitter for military science and technology updates!
Disclaimer: Re-published content may have been edited for length and clarity. The appearance of hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense. For other than authorized activities, such as, military exchanges and Morale, Welfare and Recreation sites, the Department of Defense does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. Such links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this DoD website.
from Armed with Science http://ift.tt/1Flme7K
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