So, they’re going to fix Hubble and bring it up to modern spec in 2008. That’s great and about time somebody used some common sense about our nation’s (the world’s, actually) valuable astronomy asset. Sure the mission can be dangerous, but the dangers are known. And the return is great. As is the respect for what HST can do.
HST's view of 838 Monocerotis. Read more here.
HST does drop-dead gorgeous images, like the recent view of V838 Monocerotis, above. It delivers multi-wavelength views (very near infrared and ultraviolet) of objects to let us know how they look in different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. And, since its launch and first servicing mission, HST has taken us farther out to the most distant reaches of the cosmos. What’s not to like about that?
So, I’m glad they’re going to restore HST and bring it up to date. It’s a respectable and famous observatory, and worth far more to humanity than a lot of other things our tax dollars fund.
The Stardust Spacecraft encountering Comet Wild artist's conception courtesy The Stardust Mission web page
Tis the season for planetary missions! Mars is in the picture for Christmas and after New Years and Cassini is already sending back great images of Saturn in preparation for its upcoming encounter with the ringed planet. But, little pieces of the solar system like comets and interstellar dust grains are coming in for attention, too. Right after New Years’ Day the Stardust spacecraft will have its turn in the limelight as it encounters Comet Wild 2. The idea behind this mission is to capture tiny grains of interplanetary dust that are caught up in the coma and tail of the comet. Onboard the spacecraft is a tennis-racquet shaped collector with aerogel embedded inside — and this is the stuff that will “capture” the dust grains. While all this is going on, the spacecraft will send back close-up pictures of the comet. Ultimately, the spacecraft will return to Earth in January 2006 and send the collector (safely stored inside a capsule) back to scientists who will test the dust grains to understand their composition and age.
The latest in comet dust-gathering technology: aerogel! The Stardust Mission web page
Actually, Stardust has been collecting particles throughout much of its mission, all in an effort to understand more about what’s populating interplanetary space. The comet particles will also tell us much about the conditions in the solar system at the time the comet formed — back when the Sun and planets were coalescing.
