3 ms·
28 years in space is a long time, and the new JWST has a 5x larger collection area and is fundamentally capable of detecting a much larger spectrum (the mirrors
by hwillis 8y ago
28 years in space is a long time, and the new JWST has a 5x larger collection area and is fundamentally capable of detecting a much larger spectrum (the mirrors are kept colder). The HST has cost more to keep operational than it did to build at this point, and its construction was not smooth. Money might be better spent elsewhere.
However, there is a HUGE amount of data still to collect from space-based telescopes. Even a crippled HST is a desperately wanted resource. It benefits us to have as many space telescopes as we can right now.
- mabbo 8y agoOut of curiosity, what costs so much in terms of operations?
- moftz 8y agoThere are a crew of engineers maintaining the satellite's position and operation while another team of scientists operate the telescope, review proposals, and schedule science time. Time also has to be scheduled for the TDRSS ground stations for data downloads. NASA is not the majority user of that system so there isn't a lot of time available. The data then needs to be adjusted and translated into something that can be given to scientists. There is an entire institute, the STScI, that manages missions for Hubble and will someday do the same for JWST and WFIRST. I'm sure there are at least a few dozen engineers and scientists that keep Hubble operational and busy. http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/team_hubble/ http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/team_hubble/