The Hubble Space Telescope Is in Safe Mode for the Third Time This Year

The Hubble Space Telescope has entered right into a protecting protected mode, in what’s now an upsettingly common incidence. Mission group members have but to determine the supply of the most recent difficulty.

The downside started throughout the early hours of October 23, when error codes produced by Hubble’s science devices pointed to the “loss of a specific synchronization message,” in response to a NASA press release. These messages allow the devices to precisely reply to information requests and instructions. Mission group members carried out the required reset, permitting operations to renew the next morning.

But at 2:38 a.m. EDT on October 25, the identical factor occurred once more, however this time the science devices churned out a batch of lack of synch messages. Hubble mechanically went into protected mode consequently, and it’s been on this state ever since. Science operations are presently on maintain, however the NASA group insists that Hubble’s devices are “healthy” and that the house telescope will keep in protected mode throughout the investigation.

Launched in 1990, the storied telescope has supplied spectacular views of the cosmos and invaluable astronomical information. Hubble, a joint mission of NASA and the European Space Agency, was solely purported to final 15 years, but it surely simply retains on ticking, regardless of the occasional glitch. Current indications recommend Hubble will stay operational into the late 2020s and presumably even into the 2030s.

Mission specialists are attempting to get a deal with on the present state of affairs—an obvious synchronization difficulty—by analyzing spacecraft information and system diagrams. They’re additionally working to develop new methods of accumulating information from Hubble, a course of that’s anticipated to take not less than every week. No timetable has been set for Hubble to return to its frequently scheduled programming. We reached out to NASA for extra particulars, however no new info was supplied.

This newest incident marks the third time that Hubble has entered into protected mode in 2021, and we are able to solely hope that, like all earlier instances this has occurred, the spacecraft will wake from its slumber. The state of affairs appeared dodgy on June 13 of this yr, when Hubble entered into protected mode on account of a failed Power Control Unit. It took NASA a full month to carry Hubble again, which it lastly managed to do by switching to backup {hardware}. Hubble additionally entered into protected mode this previous March on account of a software program glitch, in addition to in 2008, 2018, and 2019.

Hubble is superior, and we hope to see it again as quickly as potential, however its successor, the Webb house telescope, is ready within the wings. Launch of the next-gen house telescope is presently scheduled for December 18, 2021 at 7:20 a.m. EDT.

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