NASA may have found a Hubble problem – now for a risky part

The effort to repair the Hubble Space Telescope continues, with NASA identifying a small handful of aging hardware that can prevent the iconic instruments from switching back. The problem begins in mid-June, after Hubble puts itself into safe mode after a problem with a cargo computer. The telescope itself is still in good health, said NASA. 

Safe mode is, as the name suggests, conservation conditions in which telescope instruments can be locked, preventing them from unintentional damage. The problem is, while they are in that state, they do not conduct experiments or actual collection data.

For that to happen, the computer chargo needs to be functional, but because the hardware running is not exactly compelled. In fact, the computer spacecraft computer standards NASA-1 – or NSSC-1 – in his heart was built in the 1980s, and based on the design of the 1970s. At that time, it was the latest effort to standardize space hardware and dramatically reduced project costs such as the maximum mission of the sun and landsat-d mission.

Now, after a few weeks of testing, NASA believes it has identified defects in the last downtime center. “The source of computer problems lies in the science instrument command unit and data handling (Si C & DH), where the computer chargo is located,” The Hubble Team NASA explained. “Some parts of the hardware on the C & DH can be the culprit.”

Knowing the possibility of the cause, and really fixing it is two very different things. The current focus is to try to understand whether it’s a data formatter unit / science (CU / SDF) – responsible for sending and formatting commands and data – or power regulators in the power control unit – which ensures a stable voltage supply to the computer hardware charge – that’s The problem is.

Overcoming good will be a challenge. “If one of these systems is determined as possible causes, the team must complete a more complicated operating procedure to switch to the backup unit,” NASA explained. “This procedure will be more complex and risky than the team executed last week, which involves switching to the backup of computer hardware and memory modules. To switch to CU / SDF reserves or power regulators, several other hardware boxes on the spacecraft must also be Enabled because of the way they are connected to the SI & DH unit. “

To understand whether it is actually necessary – or even tends to help – NASA plans to run a new simulation before. It would not be the first time that the switch like that happened, with Hubble flipping between the CU / SDF module along the way back in 2008 to bypass the damaged unit. The 2009 service mission then replaced the entire C & DH unit.

However, with the retirement period of the space shuttle program, and no partners in current readiness, such improvements are not an option for Hubble now. While NASA is preparing a new instrument, James Webb Space is a stronger telescope, which will not be launched until later in the early 2021. For now, then, the fate of Hubble depends on persuading Tech Old-Old to play well, not to run the telescope to come to the end of the time.