Provided by Popular Science

Last month, six astronauts convened in New York City to discuss STS-125, the last mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, which happened in 2009. As it approached its 20th birthday, the telescope was in desperate need of an upgrade. The orbital optics, batteries, and other equipment had slowly deteriorated due to sun exposure and age.

Space Shuttle mission STS-125 was deployed to renovate the telescope in a series of space walks. For a lot of missions, they say dont worry about things, we can always get that done next time, you dont have to try and rush, Scott Altman, the former mission commander of STS-125, tells Popular Science. But we knew this was the last time anyone was going, so anything we didnt get done, wasnt going to get done.

Eventually Earth's gravity will pull the telescope to a fiery death.

Despite the pressures of the operation, the crew members recalled how they managed to upgrade Hubble as much as possible during five long, arduous space walks, ensuring the telescopes operational capabilities well beyond the end of the Space Shuttle program in 2011.

Now Hubble is coming up on 25 years old, and NASA doesnt have any official plans for upgrading the telescope, meaning its hardware will grow old and out-of-date in the coming years. Without assistance, Hubble cant maintain its orbit forever, and eventually Earth's gravity will pull the telescope to a fiery death.

Provided by Popular Science

Just like an iPhone, the Hubble used to get an update every couple of years. From 1993 to 2002, the space agency sanctioned four servicing missions to the telescope, in which astronauts would replace old or degraded technology with newer optics and hardware. Originally a fifth servicing mission was scheduled for 2005, but in 2003, with the Columbia Space Shuttle disaster, everything changed.

The disaster put an intense spotlight on all subsequent shuttle missions -- notably the importance of having a 'Plan B.' During trips to the International Space Station, astronauts could easily seek refuge aboard the station if something happened to the shuttle. But for trips to the Hubble, there was no place to hide. So if there was damage to the shuttle, the crew members would either die in space or die during reentry.

Provided by Popular Science

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Is NASA Going To Let The Hubble Telescope Burn Up?