hubble past …future?. nasa’s great observatories “an astronomical mount rushmore” spitzer...

HUBBLE

Past

…future?

NASA’s Great Observatories“an astronomical Mount Rushmore”

Spitzer Chandra

Compton Hubble

Gains in orbit

• No atmospheric blurring

• Wider accessible wavelength range

• Instrumental stability

• No clouds/daylight (timing)

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

• Hubble constant from Cepheid variable stars

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

• Hubble constant from Cepheid variable stars

• Black holes in (almost all) galactic nuclei

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

• Hubble constant from Cepheid variable stars

• Black holes in (almost all) galactic nuclei

• Protoplanetary material near young stars

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

• Hubble constant from Cepheid variable stars

• Black holes in (almost all) galactic nuclei

• Protoplanetary material near young stars

• Gravitational lenses

Some HST Science highlights

• Structures of distant galaxies

• Hubble constant from Cepheid variable stars

• Black holes in (almost all) galactic nuclei

• Protoplanetary material near young stars

• Gravitational lenses

• Intergalactic gas and its history

• Stuff scattered all the way through the textbooks

Instrument history

1990: FGS HSP FOS GHRS FOC WF/PC1993: FGS CoSTAR FOS GHRS FOC WFPC21997: FGS CoSTAR NICMOS STIS FOC WFPC22002: FGS CoSTAR NICMOS STIS ACS WFPC2

200? COS, WFC3

Hubble status, Sept. 2004

• Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph dead (only high-res/small-region spectrometer)• 3 of 6 gyros (RSUs) functional (3 needed for full

tracking, some observations with 2)• Battery capacity decreasing (will be useless circa

2010)• Estimated 50% failure time on above: 2007• Instrument/transmitter power cycling now reduced by

rescheduling/eliminating parallel imaging

Options

• Shuttle SM4 (O’Keefe ruled out, CAIB concerns)

• Robotic mission (new tech, some changeouts very risky)

• Replace the whole thing (HOP proposal to refly COS/WFC3)

Shuttle?

• “Safe haven” would mean standby orbiter

• Limited remaining flights earmarked to ISS

• Need for independent orbital inspection

• Victim of the Vision?

• Orbital mechanics: 28.5-degree inclination, getting heaviest payloads highest from Cape Canaveral, restricts options now

Servicing non-options

• Prohibitive energy requirements to co-orbit with ISS in reach of astronauts

• 28-degree orbit out of reach from Baikonur (ITAR restrictions aside)

• Ion thrusters would take the estimated telescope lifetime for orbit change

• ~2015 estimated deorbit without boosting

Robotics/teleoperation?

• Canadian ISS arm not required yet – “spare”• Some tasks straightforward, actually robotic plus

teleoperations mission• Double big/small arm• Robot docking/deorbit committed already• Tests make this look possible• 2-piece spacecraft, Delta/Atlas launch• 2007 a challenge; budget is ballooning• Political aspects re pinning blame

Solar array connectors

Replace capabilities?

• Technology since 1980: lots cheaper. Thin flexible mirrors, lightweight structures, stabilize mirrors rather than structure…

• Unique access to optical/UV range• Plan on table to fly 2.4m mirror with

existing HST instruments (Hubble Origins Probe or HOP); could be as low as $250M.

• Need to decide who gets the instruments!

Next up: JWST

James Webb Space Telescope

• Launch 2011, on Ariane V, to L2 region

• 6.5m deployable primary

• 0.6-20 microns (far red to mid-IR)

• Key problems: formation of galaxies, first stars, maybe planets

• Spacecraft weight/mirror area ratio roughly that of Hubble mirror alone!

And at other wavelengths…

Chandra and its complement XMM-Newton

Across the spectrum - now

FarIR MidIR nearIR opt UV farUV X-ray gamma

Spitzer

Hubble Chandra

GALEX

FUSE INTEGRAL

WMAP

Multispectral Greatest Hits

• Intergalactic gas• Starburst galaxies• High-redshift galaxies• Evaporating planets• Protoplanetary disks• Growth of black holes• Complexity of stardeath

• Gamma-ray bursts• Supernova chemistry• Quasar jets• Stripped galaxies• Pregalactic lumps• Galaxy history• Relativistic jets

A panchromatic view -spiral galaxy M81

ROSATGALEXKitt PeakSpitzerVLA

Across the spectrum - soon

FarIR MidIR nearIR opt UV farUV X-ray gamma

Spitzer

Hubble? Chandra and XMM

GALEX?

FUSE? INTEGRAL

Planck

Herschel

Swift

SIMTPF?

JWST

A new Universe to explore

• The full electromagnetic spectrum

• Open international competition for observations

• Public data archives (without mailing tapes!)

• The beginnings of the Virtual Observatory

• But astronomers think about facilities differently from NASA and ESA…