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TheWonderoftheUniverse
BrockMinson,BrookeLords,JacobMahler,SamanthaZvonkovic,SamuelJohnson
SaltLakeCommunityCollege

Abstract
TheHubbletelescopehasbeenwildlyefficientasascientificinstrument.Atitslaunchit
wasthebestandmosthightechtelescopemade.Therehavebeen5differentservice
missionssinceitsinitiallaunchtokeepitfunctioningandexcelling.Throughdata
retrievedbytheHubbletelescope,scientistshavemademanydiscoveriesaboutthe
universe,includinghowblackholesandsupernovaework.Ithascapturedthousandsof
beautifulandprovocativeimagesoftheuniverse.

Sinceancienthistory,thetimeofGalileoandAristotle,mankindhasalwayshad
questionsaboutthestars.Theuniversethatseemedunendingandunattainablewasagoaltobe
attainedandtobeseen.Sincethebeginningofearlytelescopes,mankindhascomeupwithmany
theoriesonhowtheuniversehasworked.Theyguessedatwhatwasouttherelurkinginthe
neverendingdarkness.Afteryearsandyearsofdevelopmentthetelescopegotmankindcloserto
theirgoal.Thenin1990themanyquestionsaboutourgiantuniversebecamealittlemore
feasible.

TheHubbleSpaceTelescopeisamanmadewonderandabreakthroughinthehistoryof

scienceandastronomy.TheHubbletelescopehasshownusmanythingsaboutourworld,our
solarsystem,andeventheuniverse.Aswediscussaboutthisamazingbreakthroughinhistory
wewantyoutounderstandmoreonwhythisisimportant,includingtheconceptualhistoryand
makingofthisinvention,andowtheHubbleSpaceTelescopehaschangedhistoryandis
continuingtochangehistory.

ThefirstknownthoughtofthisideacamefromaGermanscientistnamedHermann

Oberth,whocameuptheideaoflaunchingatelescopeintospacebyarocket.In1946,an
AmericanastrophysicistnamedLymanSpitzerJr.cameupwiththeideaofhavingan
observatoryinspace,andspentalmost50yearstryingtomakeitareality.In1969Lyman
SpitzerJr.,duetohisgreathelpintheNASA(NationalAeronauticsandSpaceAdministration)
program,gottheideaapprovedforaspacetelescope.
ThetelescopeisnamedafterEdwinP.Hubble.HewasanAmericanscientistbornin
1910,whostudiedlawatOxfordasaRhodesscholar,andearnedaPh.Dinastronomyfromthe
UniversityofChicago.In1929heidentifiedtherelationshipbetweenagalaxy'sdistanceandthe

speedatwhichitismoving.ThisrelationshipisnowknownasHubble'slaw.Hisresearchin
galaxiesjustifiedthisamazingtelescopetobenamedafterhim.

Asdevelopmentstartedonthespacetelescope,thegroupworkingontheprojectdecided

itwouldbeagoodideatohaveinterchangeableinstrumentsonthetelescopetobeabletodo
manymorethings.Thiswillallowthedistanceofthetelescopetogofartherbyreducing
ultravioletallthewaytoinfraredlight,allowingittoseepastthelightcominginandfocuson
thelightatfartherdistances.

Anotherideathatwasaddedtothisprojectwasnottojustlaunchitasasatellite,but

attachedtoaSpaceShuttle.Thiswillbetheretoreplacebrokenparts,orjustrepairthemwhen
needed.SoontheEuropeanSpaceagencystartedtoworkwithNASAtomaketheHubbleSpace
telescope,andin1977thefundingwasgivenfromcongressforthisamazinginvention.Withthis
newfundingtheprogramboomed,andmanycontractorscametohelpbuildthismighty
telescope.Manypeoplewereintrigued,andpeopleskilledinphysicsandengineering,including
astrophysicistsandastronomerscametobuildthetelescope,spaceshuttle,androckets.

TheprojectbecamecompleteinOctoberof1986,butduetotheSpaceShuttleChallenger

explodinginJanuaryofthatsameyear,allshuttleflightswerecancelledfortwoyears.The
workersstillcontinuedtweakingtheHubbleTelescope.Theyimprovedagreatmanythingsonit
togiveitthebestpossiblechancetolastitsjourneyintospace.
TheHubbletelescopeisabletoseesowellinspacepartlybecauseitisoutsidethe
atmosphere,butthatisonlypartoftheequation.WithoutthetelescopesincredibleeyesightIt
wouldnotbeabletotakefulladvantageofitsposition.TheHubbleseyesightcomefroma
fairlystraightforwarddesignconsistingoftwomirrors,supporttrusses,andopenings.Howit

worksislightisallowedthroughanopeninganditisreflectedoffofthefirstmirror,whichis
concave,sothatmeansitreflectsthelightattheperfectangletohitthesecondarymirror,which
thenreflectsthattoafocalpointwhichisthenprocessedwithmanyscientificinstruments.
Themirrorsarewhatallowsittoseeaswellasitdoes.Themirrorsweregrounddownto
makeitnotdeviatemorethan1/800000thsofaninch.Ifthemirrorwasenlargedtothediameter
oftheearththebiggestbumpwouldbelessthan6inches.Thusthisdesignisthemosteffective
outofallthedesignspossibletogettheclearestimageswepossiblycan.
SomecoolfactsaboutHubblearethatitgoesaroundtheearthat17,000mphandhas
traveled3billionmilesgoingaroundtheearth.Ithasnothrusterssoitspinsawheelandby
Newtonsthirdlawmovesthetelescopeintheoppositedirectionofthewheel.ithasapointing
accuracyof.007arcsecondsbutoutsidethehazeofouratmosphereithasanaccuracyof.005
arcseconds.TheHubblearchivecontainsmorethan100Terabytesofdataandreceives10more
terabyteseachyear.SinceHubblehasbeeninspaceithasgained3,000poundsofupgrades
makingitatotalof27,000poundsand13.3meterslong.

Aftereverythingwasfinishedandalltherightlawsweresetinplace,theHubbleSpace

telescopelaunchedonApril24,1990.Themassivetelescopecarried5instrumentsaboard:The
WideField/PlanetaryCamera,theGoddardHighResolutionSpectrograph,theFaintObject
Camera,theFaintObjectSpectrograph,andtheHighSpeedPhotometer(Hubblesite.org).These
arethetoolsNASAhasusedtodelivertheamazingpicturesthatweallhaveseen.

Wellbeforethosepicturesweretaken,andalmostimmediatelywheninorbit,theHubble

Telescopehadsomethingclearlywrongwiththelens.Therewasnofocuslikethereshouldbe.
Thehighlypolishedmirrorwasshapedwrong,makingthepicturereallyblurryandunfocused.

Thelightthatwasbouncinginthemiddleofthemirrorwasdifferentthanthatoftheoutside
causingthefocustobeoffeversoslightly.Butwiththegreatmanypeopleworkingonthis
project,manyhadgreatideasinthefieldofoptics.Theyusedmanysmalllensestocorrectthe
directionoflight.Thisnotonlyhelpedwiththeinitialproblem,butalsohelpedcreateotherways
tofurtherdevelopothertoolsusedbythetelescope.
AfterthefirstmissiontolaunchHubblewascompletetherehavebeenfivedifferent
servicingmissionstothetelescope,eachofwhichupgradedorserviceditscapabilities.

FromDecember213,1993,whichwasthefirstservicingmission,astronautswereable

toinstallnewequipmentandfixtheflawedmirrororiginallylaunchedwiththetelescope.The
originalmirrorlaunchedin1990hadaflawcalledsphericalaberration.Theouteredgeofthe
mirrorwasslightlytooflat,whichscatteredthelightratherthandirectingitlikeamorepure
spherewould.ThismadeallofHubblesimagesblurryandbasicallyunusable.Theequipment
addedin1993functionedbasicallylikeapairofglasses,butwasthesizeofatelephonebooth.It
placed5pairsofmirrorsinfrontoftheoriginalmirror,fixingtheproblem.

ThesecondservicemissionwasfromFebruary1121,1997.Morenewinstrumentswere

installedthatextendedHubbleswavelengthrange,extendingitsvisibilitytoveryfaredgesof
theuniverse.Theyalsoupgradedfailedanddegradedpieces.Theextendedwavelengthrange
evenallowedHubbletoseenearinfraredwaves.ItwasduringthismissionthatHubblealsogot
spectroscopiccapabilities.ThisletsHubbleanalyzealotofdatafromthelightitreceives,
includingphysicalandchemicalpropertiesofthelight,allowingNASAtolearnmoreaboutfar
awayareasinthegalaxy.Thisinformationisespeciallyusefulforstudyingandfinding
supermassiveblackholes.Thestorageonthesatellitewasupgradedtosolidstateinsteadofthe

reeltaperecorderthatitinitiallyhad.Thismadeitmorestableandwithlongerrecording
capabilities.

Servicemission3AtookplacefromDecember1927,1999.Thethirdmissionwasatwo

partmissiontoallowNASAtobringHubbletoworkingorderasquicklyaspossible.Itwas
originallygoingtobepreventative,but4/6ofthegyroshadfailed.NASArequiresatleast3
gyrosforthetelescopetobefunctioning.Theybroughttheoldequipmentuptomoderncutting
edgestandards,includingabettermaincomputer,newsolidstatedrives,andnewinsulation.

3BwasfromMarch112,2002.NASAreplacedthesolarpanelsandaddedanew

advancedcameraforsurveys.Thiscamerais10timesmorepowerfulthanthecamerait
replaced.Itisabletoseeultravioletwaves,extendingHubblesreachandevenallowing
scientiststogaintheinformationrequiredtounderstandhowtheuniverseevolved.

Thefifthservicemission,SM4,tookplacefromMay1124,2009.Anewspectrograph

wasinstalled,theCosmicOriginsSpectrograph.Theolderfailedspectrograph,theSpace
TelescopeImagingSpectrograph,andtheAdvancedCameraforSurveyswererepairedinorbit
bytheastronauts.Allotherreplaceablecomponentssuchascomputers,batteries,andinsulation
werereplacedtoextendHubbleslife.

Throughthesefiveservicemissions,NASAhasbeenabletokeepHubblearadically

innovativeandusefultool.HubblehasbeenadrivingforcetofurtherNASAlaunchesandthe
developmentofnewtechnologiesonEarth,thenupgradedthroughservicemissions.And
throughtheseservicemissionsourideaontheuniversehasexpanded.Wearenowabletosee
morethroughtheHubbleSpaceTelescopethatwehaveneverdreamedof.

Thisyearmakesits25thyearinspaceandisexpectedtolastuntil2020but,bythenthe

JamesWebbTelescopewillhavebeenalreadyoperatingforayear.Theresultssincehavingthe
HubbleTelescopehasincreasedourknowledgeoftheuniverseandwhatisouttherebymore
thanwecaneverimagine.
TheJamesWebbtelescope,namedafterthesecondNASAadministrator,isscheduledto
launchin2018.JamesE.WebboversawNASAfromthebeginningoftheKennedy
administrationuntiltheendoftheJohnsonadministration,workingwiththefirstmanned
launchesupuntilthefirstmannedApolloflight.Thenewtelescopeisnamedafterhimasa
tributetothesuccessofNASAunderhisleadership,aimingtoinspireafutureofsuccessful
spaceexploration.
TheHubbleTelescopehasdiscoveredmanynewthingsinouruniverse.Wehavebeen
abletodiscoversomanynewthingsthatwehavewonderedaboutforsolonganddidn'thavethe
technologytomakethequestionbecomefacts.Becausewehavethetechnologynowweareable
todiscoverthosethingsaswellassomanyotherswenevereventhoughtaboutdiscovering.
OneofthethingsweareabletowitnessbecausewehavetheHubbleTelescopeistheprocessof
supernova,whichisthedeathandexplosionofmassivestars.Wearealsoabletoseethe
aftermathoftheexplosions.NASAwasabletodiscoveradarkenergythatisaroundthestars.
Theywereabletodiscoverthatthatdarkenergyisacosmicgaspedalthathelpsinaccelerating
theuniverse'sexpansionrate.DuetotheHubbleTelescopewewereabletofindoutthatthat
Energyhasaconstantpresentintheuniverse.

(thisisapictureofsupernovaorastarexploding)
ThroughextensiveresearchwiththeHubbleTelescope,scientistswereabletoestimate
theageoftheuniverseas13.7billionyearsold.Wewereabletodiscoverthisbecausethey
foundwhat'scalledanoldwhitedwarfstar.Thetimeittookthestarslighttobenoticeabletous
isbillionsofyears,soscientistusedthisdatatofigureoutagoodestimateonhowoldour
universeis.TheHubbleTelescopenarrowingtheageofouruniverseto13or14billionyearsold
isamazing.Thatinformationhashelpedussomuchinstudyingotherstarsanddeterminingtheir
ageandtheageofthegalaxytheyarein.
ThenextthingthatwewereabletoseeusingHubbletelescopeisblackholes.Most
telescopeshaveaflatdisklens,whilethelensofHubbletelescopeisroundedperfectlyand
delicatelytoallowmorelightintoit.Thismakesthingsmoreclearinspace,includingblack
holes.
In1999,TheHubbleSpaceTelescopewasabletocaptureamomentwhenagammaray
exploded.Atthetimeitwasthemostpowerfulinstanceeverrecorded.NASAhasdeducedusing
theHubbletelescopethatthegammarayexplosionviewedin1999maybethebiggestexplosion
sincethebigbang.

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(Ablackhole)
Eversince1963whentheQuasarswerediscoveredNASAhasbeentryingtofigureout
howthesecompactdynamosoflightandotherradiationproducessomuchenergy.Usingthe
HubbletelescopeastronomerswereabletotrackdownthehomesoftheseQuasars,andhave
beenabletoprovethatthesecompactdynamosresideinthemiddleofgalaxies.
Wearenowabletoseeproplyds.Thisisanamazingdiscoverybecauseproplydsarethe
birthplaceofnewplanetarysystems.ThiswasprovedbyusingtheHubbletoshowthatproplyds
arefoundaroundnewlyformingstars.

(Quasars)
Waterissomethingthatweneedtosurvive,andwedidn'tknowwasonanotherplanet.
ThroughtheHubbletelescopewewereabletoseeclearimagesofwateronotherplanets.Thisis

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ahugediscoverybecauseifthereiswateronotherplanets,thenextthingwemightbeableto
discoveronaplanetislife.Hubbleishelpingusmakediscoverieslikethis.
In2002,astarintheconstellationMonocerossuddenlybecameevenbrighterthanithad
alreadybeenpreviously.ThepeoplewithHubblewantedtoseewhatwasgoingon.Withthe
clearimagesfromtheHubblescientistswereabletoseeaseriesofimagesoflightilluminated
shellsofdustsurroundingthestarV838.ThisexplosionrippledoutfromV838filling6light
years.Ithadneverbeforebeenseenandwascalledalightecho.

Wecannowestimatetheuniverse'sexpansionsetinmotionbytheBigBangmustbe

slowingdownafterthatinitialpush.Hubblefoundoutthatsupernovashelpedshowthatthe
expansionoftheuniverseisactuallyspeedingup.
Thetelescopehasdiscoveredlotsofnewthingsaboutourplanet,andwhethertheyare
bigorsmalltheyarehelpingusmakemoreandmoresenseoftheuniversearoundus.Wekeep
discoveringmoreandmore.ThankstotheHubbletelescopeourresearchisdeepening,andwe
arecomingupwithradicalnewquestions.
SincetheHubbletelescopehasbeeninspacewehavelearnedsomuchaboutour
universe.TheHubbletelescopehascontributedsomuchtosciencethatwewouldnotbeas
advancedinourknowledgeofspacewithoutit.Ithaschangedthewaywelookattheuniverse
withitsincredibledetail.Ithasalsohelpedmakesenseofmanyofthetheoriesoftheuniverse.
Sinceithasbeenlaunchedmorethan12,800scientificarticleshavebeenpublishedbasedonits
data.
Afterdiscoveringthatblackholesdoexistotherobservatoriesandlabsopenedupto
studyblackholesandexaminetheirrelationshipwiththeirhomegalaxy.Hubblehasalsotaught

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usaboutdarkmatterandthatitisaninvisibleformofmatterthatmakesupmostofthe
universe'smass.Thedarkmattersgravityiswhatbringsnormalmattertogethertoformstars
andothergalaxies.Thisdiscoveryofdarkmatterwasrecognizedwiththe2011NobelPrizefor
Physics.Hubblehasshownusthatourknownmatterisnottheonlykindofmatter.Thatthere
areweirderthingsouttherethenwecouldimagine.
Hubblehasalsoshownusthatgalaxiesareinstagesofevolution.Toddlergalaxiesthat
havebeenaroundsincethebeginningoftheuniversehelpscientistsunderstandhowgalaxiesare
formed.Anotherstagewouldbeprotoplanetarydisks,whichareclumpsofdustandgasesthat
surroundayoungstartohelpnewplanetsformaroundthatstar.Allofthesearejustsomeofthe
thingHubblehascontributedtoastronomy.
Hubblestechnologyandinformationisnotclosedtothepublic.Anypersoncansubmita
proposalandrequestatimeonthetelescope.Aftertheirdiscoveriestheywillhaveayearto
pursuetheirworkbeforeitbecomespublic.Noinformationiskeptasecreteverythingthat
someonelearnswilleventuallybeletoutforeveryonetolearn.
TheHubbleSpaceTelescopehasbeenoneofthebiggestdevelopmentsinthehistoryof
theworld.Withitslonghistory,ithasshownushowtheuniverseworksandisunlockingmore
andmoremysterieseveryday.Nowthatwehavethisinformationavailabletous,weneedtouse
it.Letusallfindthediscoveriesoftheuniverse,andfindtheformerlythoughtunattainable
knowledgeoftheuniverse.

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WorksCited
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http://science.nasa.gov/missions/hst/
http://hubblesite.org/hubble_20/downloads/hubble_topscience_lores.pdf

n.d.25October2015.<http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/hubble_essentials/>.
Hubblesite.org.n.d.25October2015.

NASA.NASA,n.d.Web.28Oct.2015.
<http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/servicing/index.html>.