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Could Hubble be feasibly operational past 2037 without maintenance? Would this just be a boost mission or repair also?


Given Hubble's gyroscope failure problem -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubble_Space_Telescope#Gyrosco...

- I would not count on it lasting long enough for Jared & Co. to get there.

(My impression was that gyroscope replacement was a "dedicated space shuttle flight and multiple EVA's" sort of job - likely a big reach for SpaceX / Dragon / Polaris, which have flown zero EVA missions so far.)

Edit: Sounds like the gyroscopes lasting long enough for Jared & Co. to get there is pretty sure. But depending on the design service life of the still-working gyro's - and a load of other critical items - 2037 is still a huge ask.


Hubble can operate with down to 1 gyro [1]; however, the viewable regions of the sky are limited.

[1] https://esahubble.org/about/general/gyroscopes/


It should be possible to "fix" the gyroscopes by simply mounting a unit to the docking port or somewhere else on the exterior that contains a brand new gyroscope system, without needing to remove any of the existing broken gyros. It's probably necessary to make some electrical connections, but I guess it could even be possible for the strap-on gyros to have their own power electronics if that makes things easier.


I'm wondering the same thing. Last servicing was in 2009; poor thing is long overdue for some TLC.


NASA said in their announcement that the explorations they're doing include the feasibility of various kinds of servicing, not just boosting.




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