SPACE TECH
NASA Seeks Industry Proposals to Save the Iconic Hubble Space Telescope
Facing atmospheric drag and an atmospheric reentry trajectory in about six years, NASA has issued an RFI for in-space servicing missions to rescue Hubble.
NASA is reviving discussions to rescue the legendary Hubble Space Telescope, which is operating smoothly but on track to reenter Earth's atmosphere roughly six years from now due to natural orbital decay.
The agency issued a request for information focusing on "in-space servicing" capabilities, opening the floor to proposals that could boost Hubble's orbit or enhance its scientific capabilities via robotic spacecraft. Launched in April 1990, Hubble has been serviced five times by astronauts—the last time in 2009—and its groundbreaking discoveries include revealing the accelerating expansion of the universe.