Hubble Space Telescope Back Online: Captures Abel 78 in Constellation Cygnus Despite Glitch

NASA said the legendary Hubble Space Telescope has recovered from a glitch that stalled its research activities over the weekend.

Due to an apparent device glitch, the telescope suddenly entered "safe mode" on March 7 and stopped the observatory's science observations. On March 11, research activities were resumed. According to a statement issued on Friday, March 12, while Hubble is partly operational again, NASA is still troubleshooting one instrument on the 30-year-old telescope.

"The telescope has completed its first observation since returning to science mode, using the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph instrument to map gas flows in active galactic nuclei," NASA officials wrote in the statement.

Wide Field Camera 3 has been put on hold until the team looks at a low-voltage problem that has stopped it from returning to work.

What Happened to Wide Field Camera 3?

The US space agency said an "unexpected bug" caused the WFC3 problem. The telescope switched from safe mode to pre-science mode after the team resolved the initial program bug. NASA included no more information about the camera, only stating that "the team is actively investigating the problem and potential solutions."

According to the statement, the programming glitch was caused by a new change to the telescope's code intended to fix Hubble's gyroscope problems. During experiments, Hubble uses gyroscopes to accurately point itself in order to lock onto a science mark. Just three of the telescope's six gyroscopes are now operational after three decades of orbit. For the time being, the Hubble team is stopping the enhancement; engineers will modify it later for potential use.

When the telescope was in safe mode, the team found another problem with the spacecraft. The telescope has a door at the top that will automatically filter out the sun's light and heat if Hubble tips the telescope in the wrong direction.

NASA said the door hasn't been called into use in that way yet, so it's supposed to close when the telescope enters safe mode. Engineers claim they have found a solution to the problem by moving the door to its backup motor.

Fox News said the voltage levels in the WFC3 power supplies have gradually declined over time, according to further research.

"The electronics experience colder temperatures when the hardware is turned off in safe mode," NASA explained. The slight voltage fluctuation that caused WFC3 recovery operations to be halted was caused by this element, in combination with the power that instrument components draw when they are switched back on.

Space.com said Hubble Space Telescope was launched in April 1990, and astronauts used NASA's space shuttle fleet five times to restore and update the observatory, the most recent in 2009. Hubble has been on its own since those vehicles were withdrawn in 2011.

Telescope Captured Images Despite Glitch

Despite technical difficulties, the Hubble Space Telescope captured images of Agnel 78. According to the European Space Agency, Abel 78 is a rare planetary nebula 5,000 light-years from Earth.

While the star's heart no longer burns hydrogen and helium, a thermonuclear explosion on its surface rapidly expels the resulting mass. This ejection shakes the old nebula's particles, causing filaments and random shells to form around the central star, as seen in this picture.

Astronomers also discovered the root of the galaxy's "ears," according to OBOZREVATEL.

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