Hubble Space Telescope

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured distant reaches of the universe over the past 22 years, but with the end of the space shuttle program, has not been repaired since 2009. A filmmaker is challenging that decision with the documentary "Saving Hubble" and will speak in Baltimore on Tuesday. David Gaynes will speak at the Space Telescope Science Institute with his message about saving Hubble, which is expected to continue operating only through next year. NASA is focused on replacing Hubble with the James Webb Space Telescope in 2018.

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured what space scientists called potentially the "comet of the century", Comet ISON, as it speeds toward Earth at 47,000 mph. The comet, technically known as  C/2012 S1,  will pass within 1.1 million miles of Earth seven months from now, and it could be visible with the naked eye if it doesn't break up passing by the sun. It could be so bright, in fact, that it would outshine the full moon, according to...

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured what space scientists called potentially the "comet of the century", Comet ISON, as it speeds toward Earth at 47,000 mph. The comet, technically known as  C/2012 S1,  will pass within 1.1 million miles of Earth seven months from now, and it could be visible with the naked eye if it doesn't break up passing by the sun. It could be so bright, in fact, that it would outshine the full moon, according to...

Description: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has detected a supernova that exploded more than 10 billion years ago, the most distant of its kind ever spotted. It was 4 percent farther away and 350 million years older than the previous record-holder, a supernova found three months ago by a team at the U.S. Energy Department's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California. Researchers: David O. Jones of the Johns Hopkins University was the lead author on a paper detailing the discovery.

Ralph Vanderlipp, an electrical engineer whose work spanned the eras from World War II to the space age and into the computer age, died Nov. 3 of leukemia at Gilchrest Hospice Care in Towson. The long-time Columbia resident was 83. From serving as an electronics and radar technician on a cargo ship during the waning days of World War II to helping interpret data from the Hubble Space telescope, Mr. Vanderlipp spent decades on the cutting edge of electronics technology. "If you were to look up 'electrical engineer' in the dictionary, you would see his picture," said Bill Anderson, who was a young aerospace engineer working under contract for Lockheed-Martin when he first met Mr. Vanderlipp and considered him a mentor.

Happy Anniversary to the Hubble Space Telescope , launched 20 years ago today. Since a start-up marred by a flawed mirror, Hubble scientists and engineers have overcome every challenge the telescope tossed them, making Hubble arguably the best-known, most productive engine of scientific discovery in history. The final upgrades made by spacewalking astronauts last May have left the telescope better equipped than ever to advance our understanding of the universe during the observatory's final years.

Astronomers around the world got their first close-up look at the Hubble Space Telescope in seven years Wednesday as astronauts aboard the shuttle Atlantis closed in and captured the orbiting observatory for its final round of repairs and upgrades. "When we first had images of the Hubble Space Telescope, there were audible gasps of elation. This was truly a wonderful sight after seven years," said Jon Morse, NASA's director of astrophysics. Mission specialist Megan McArthur grabbed the 12-ton telescope with the shuttle's robot arm at 1:14 p.m. while orbiting 350 miles above western Australia.

A workhorse deep space camera on the Hubble Space Telescope has shut down for the third time in less than a year, and NASA scientists say that only a fraction of its capability will be restored. The $86 million Advanced Camera for Surveys was near the end of its expected lifespan, officials said. Many of its functions will be assumed by new equipment scheduled to be installed during a space shuttle servicing mission in 2008. The ACS went dark and the entire orbiting observatory entered a protective "safe mode" Saturday about 7:30 a.m., when a backup power supply system failed.

Tours of the Hubble Space Telescope control center, model rocket launches, talks by NASA experts and explanations of solar flares will be on tap today when the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt opens to the public for the first time since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Visitors will see Hubble's dimly lit control center, where scientists control the cameras used to capture the images of galaxies that enliven classroom walls around the country. The tour stops will include views of the 90-foot-high "clean room," with its dust-free environment for testing Hubble equipment; a life-size model of the Columbia space shuttle; the cumbersome space gloves worn by astronauts during Hubble servicing missions and a centrifuge where the durability of satellites is tested.

WASHINGTON - The House overwhelmingly endorsed President Bush's plans to go to the moon and Mars but put its own imprint on the future of NASA yesterday, insisting that the space agency also concentrate on research programs and repairing the Hubble telescope. The Hubble, along with science programs and aeronautics research, is popular in Congress partly because the contracts generate thousands of jobs, injecting millions into the economies of many lawmakers' districts. The first blueprint for NASA's future in five years passed 383-15.

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured distant reaches of the universe over the past 22 years, but with the end of the space shuttle program, has not been repaired since 2009. A filmmaker is challenging that decision with the documentary "Saving Hubble" and will speak in Baltimore on Tuesday. David Gaynes will speak at the Space Telescope Science Institute with his message about saving Hubble, which is expected to continue operating only through next year. NASA is focused on replacing Hubble with the James Webb Space Telescope in 2018.

Ralph Vanderlipp, an electrical engineer whose work spanned the eras from World War II to the space age and into the computer age, died Nov. 3 of leukemia at Gilchrest Hospice Care in Towson. The long-time Columbia resident was 83. From serving as an electronics and radar technician on a cargo ship during the waning days of World War II to helping interpret data from the Hubble Space telescope, Mr. Vanderlipp spent decades on the cutting edge of electronics technology. "If you were to look up 'electrical engineer' in the dictionary, you would see his picture," said Bill Anderson, who was a young aerospace engineer working under contract for Lockheed-Martin when he first met Mr. Vanderlipp and considered him a mentor.

Happy anniversary to the Hubble Space Telescope , launched 20 years ago today. Since a start-up marred by a flawed mirror, Hubble scientists and engineers have overcome every challenge the telescope tossed them, making Hubble arguably the best-known, most-productive engine of scientific discovery in history. The final upgrades made by spacewalking astronauts last May have left the telescope better equipped than ever to advance our understanding of the universe during the observatory's final years.

T HE SEARCH WILL CONTINUE In recent days, some of those criticizing NASA's proposed budget have tried to paint a picture of an agency without a vision. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. NASA's far-reaching ambitions in space science have been, and will continue to be, truly inspiring. Just a few decades ago, cynical scientists used to say that there are only two facts known with certainty about the cosmos at large: that the sky is dark at night, and that our universe is expanding.

Gov. Martin O'Malley has tapped a new state advisory board to help Maryland residents find jobs with the nation's largest employer - the federal government. The 16-member Federal Facilities Advisory Board, which O'Malley announced this week, will work with the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development to examine how federal facilities in the state can boost Maryland employment numbers. Chairman Kevin F. Kelly of McLean, Va., said the board's goal "is to go out and listen to people and find out from them what they need."