The Hubble Space Telescope

Term Paper # 116047

Astronomy
Physics > Astrophysics

A look at the conception, design and use of the Hubble Space Telescope.

2,701 words () | 13 sources | APA | 2009 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper provides a history of the Hubble Space Telescope. The paper first notes that the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) was named after the astronomer Edwin Hubble and that it is presently in orbit around the Earth, just outside the planet's atmosphere, providing a great advantage over telescopes that are based on the surface. The paper then looks at how the Hubble was launched in 1990 and has grown to be one of the more valuable astronomical instruments in history. In addition, the paper looks at how breakthroughs in astrophysics have been made with the assistance of the increased abilities allowed with the HST.

Outline:
Introduction
Conception, Design, and Aims
Proposals and Funding
Engineering and Construction
Support from Earth
New Instruments and Servicing Missions
Servicing Missions 1, 2, 3A, and 3B
Scientific Results and Data
Astronomical Impact
Transmission to Earth
Use of the Telescope
Scheduling Observations
Observations by Amateur Astronomers
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"In 1983, a struggle for power between NASA and the entire scientific community led to the establishment of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). Run by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), the STScI is located on the Johns Hopkins University campus in Baltimore, Maryland. The STScI has the primary responsibility of operating the telescope and delivering data to the astronomy community. Engineering support is located nearby, just south of the STScI, in Greenbelt at the GSFC under NASA's management. Since it was launched, the HST operation has been monitored on a twenty-four hour basis, seven days per week by four separate teams of controllers referred to as Hubble's Flight Operations Team (Hubble Space Telescope, 2007)."

Sample of Sources Used:

Benedict, G. F. and McArthur, B. E. (2005), High-precision stellar parallaxes from Hubble Space Telescope fine guidance sensors, Transits of Venus: New Views of the Solar System and Galaxy, Proceedings of IAU Colloquium #196, Ed. D.W. Kurtz. Cambridge University Press, p.333-346
Benn, C.R., Sanchez, S.F. (2001), Scientific Impact of Large Telescopes, Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, v. 113, p.385
Bless, R.C., Walter, L.E., White, R.L. (1992), High speed photometer instrument handbook, v 3.0, STScI
Brandt, J.C. et al (1994), "The Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph: Instrument, goals, and science results", Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, v. 106, p. 890-908
Dunar A. J., and Waring, S. P. (1999), Power to explore--History of Marshall Space Flight Center 1960-1990, U.S. Government Printing Office