More About The Hubble Space Telescope

A free article on Science

By: Kozen Huseyin

The Hubble Space Telescope is a astronomical telescope which has captivated mans imagination of the heavens. The beauty of the universe has come into our lives thanks to the awesome pictures from the Hubble Telescope. Learn more about Hubble and learn the key Hubble Telescope facts in this article.

::: Why Is The Hubble Telescope Called Hubble? :::
This is a question that many people have, and want to know why it is called the Hubble Telescope. Well the Hubble name is not a scientific term! Though it is attributed with someone import in the field of science. And that is Edwin Hubble.

Edwin Hubble an American astronomer was a doctor who confirmed that the universe is indeed expanding. Edwin Hubble who was born 1889 and lived to 1953, is an important part of what has become the big bang theory. The big bang theory being that the universe started with literally a big bang (13.7 billion years ago), and expanded to what we have today.

::: Key Dates For The Hubble Telescope :::
The Hubble Telescope was launched on 24 April 1990. The cost was $1.5 billion US dollars, and required the help of hundreds of people to make it so.

Having launched the Hubble Telescope on the 24 of April 1990, the Hubble Telescope was deployed the next day on April 25 1990. The designated amount of time for the mission was 20 years; which makes the Hubble Telescope to come to decommissioning about the year 2010.

The Hubble Telescope also has had some important servicing missions. Servicing mission 1 began on December 1993. The second servicing mission - servicing mission 2 began on February 1997. The third servicing mission - called Servicing mission 3A, began on December 1999. And the last servicing mission for the Hubble Telescope was on February 2002, and was called Servicing mission 3B.

::: The Dimensions Of The Hubble Telescope :::
The Hubble Telescope is quite a large instrument. With a length of 43.5 feet, and a diameter of 14 feet, it is near to the size of a school bus! The Hubble Telescope weighs 11,110 kg. Even though the Hubble Telescope has a weight of 11,110 kg, in space, it is light as a feather.

::: Some More Amazing Facts About The Hubble Telescope :::
The Hubble Telescope moves at a speed of 5 miles per second, around the planet Earth! It only takes the Hubble Telescope 97 minutes to make 1 revolution around the planet Earth. And the Hubble Telescope has a speed of 17,500 mph! Nothing on land and sea can approach those speeds, currently that we know of.

The Hubble Telescope can look at everything, within its limitations, but it can not view the Sun or Mercury.

The first image that the Hubble Telescope took a picture of, was a star cluster. On the 20th of May 1990, less than a month of being deployed, the Hubble Telescope took a picture of Star Cluster NGC 3532.

Out of all the astronomical telescope on planet Earth, there is no other that can provide us with the breathtaking views from the Hubble Telescope. The Hubble Telescope has been a great achievement for mankind. Not only did we build a astronomical telescope, but we sent it into space. The Hubble Telescope communicates with planet Earth via a form of communications which does not require any cables, and it powers itself with the aid of the Sun!

Information about the Author:

Wondering how to buy a telescope? Looking for Celestron Telescopes and Bushnell telescopes? Look no further then our site, designed just for you and to help you buy the best telescope.

Science Articles: http://www.article-buzz.com

Print This Article
Add To Favorites
Email to Friends
Get Re-print Code