HST (Hubble Space Telescope)
Overview and Objectives:
The Hubble Space Telescope is a cooperative program of ESA and NASA to operate a long-lived space-based observatory for the benefit of the international astronomical community. HST is a 2.4-meter reflecting telescope, which was deployed in low-Earth orbit (600 kilometers) by the crew of the space shuttle Discovery (STS-31) on 25 April 1990.
Responsibility for conducting and coordinating the science operations of the Hubble Space Telescope rests with the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) on the Johns Hopkins University Homewood Campus in Baltimore, Maryland.
HST's current complement of science instruments include three cameras, one spectrograph (not functional at this time), and fine guidance sensors (primarily used for accurate pointing, but also for astrometric observations). Because of HST's location above the Earth's atmosphere, these science instruments can produce high-resolution images of astronomical objects. Hubble can observe ultraviolet radiation, which is blocked by the atmosphere and therefore unavailable to ground-based telescopes. In the infrared portion of the spectrum, the Earth?s atmosphere adds a great deal of background, which is absent in Hubble observations.
Present Instruments:
- ACS Advanced Camera for Surveys
- WFPC2 Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2
- STIS Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
- NICMOS Near Infrared Camera and Multi-object Spectrometer.
- FGS Fine Guidiance Sensors
- COSTAR Corrective Optics Space Telescope Axial Replacement
Resources:
Hubble Project Website hosted by NASA.
Hubble Project Website hosted by ESA.
MAST (Multimission Archive at Space Telescope Institute) is the primary archive and distribution center for HST data, distributing science, calibration, and engineering data to HST users and the astronomical community at large. Over 100 000 observations of more than 20 000 targets are available for retrieval from the Archive.
