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John Hopkins-Led Team Present 3rd Hubble Option



 
 
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Old February 3rd 05, 01:13 AM
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Default John Hopkins-Led Team Present 3rd Hubble Option

THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
OFFICE OF NEWS AND INFORMATION
901 S. Bond Street, Suite 540
Baltimore, Maryland 21218-3843
Phone: (443) 287-9960 / Fax (443) 287-9920

February 2, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT: Lisa De Nike
(443) 287-9960


ASTRONOMERS URGE CONGRESS TO CONTINUE HUBBLE SCIENCE

Johns Hopkins-led team presents new option

The world faces a dilemma: how to keep the flow of science and
discovery
from the ailing Hubble Space Telescope alive. According to an
international
team led by Johns Hopkins University astronomers, the best answer may
lie
not in a robot-led or manned repair mission, but through the launch of
a
brand new, free-flying telescope called the "Hubble Origins Probe."

"During the past 15 years, Hubble discoveries have rewritten the
textbooks
from which our children learn. Though we support any option that will
maintain the Hubble mission, the Hubble Origins Probe is the best
choice
not only for continuing that tradition of discovery, but also for
taking it
one step further," said Colin Norman, one of the leaders of the team,
during testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on
Science earlier today.

Intended to replicate and to improve upon the design of the Hubble
Space
Telescope, the Hubble Origins Probe offers an option that is low on
risk
yet high on scientific returns, according to Norman, principal
investigator
for the team that also includes Johns Hopkins astronomers Holland Ford,

Warren Moos and Tim Heckman.

For instance, HOP would make use of instruments -- the Cosmic Origins
Spectograph (COS) and the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) -- originally
built to
be installed on Hubble during its fourth service mission. In addition,
it
would include a new Very Wide-Field Imager that would "greatly enhance
the
original science mission of Hubble," Norman testified.

That Very Wide-Field Imager, slated to be built in collaboration with
Japanese partners who will underwrite the cost, will allow scientists
to
map the heavens more than 20 times faster than even a refurbished
Hubble
Space Telescope could, Norman said. What's more, the new Japanese
camera
will be open for use by the worldwide astronomical community based on a

peer review system in the same way that all Hubble instruments have
been.

Norman told the committee that it would take an estimated 65 months and
$1
billion to launch HOP, which he stated would continue and even expand
upon
the flow of science and discovery that has made the original Hubble
Space
Telescope a "national treasure."

"The groundbreaking science, the cutting-edge technology generated in
the
development of new instrumentation, the ability of Hubble science to
engage
the interest of the public and its impact on the imagination of
students,
makes it worthwhile to invest this sum of public funds to complete the
last
chapter of Hubble's remarkable legacy," Norman said. "We believe that
the
intellectual legacy of HOP would be invaluable. HOP will inspire and
motivate young scientists and engineers, helping seed America with the
human capital so vital for the long-term strength of our economy."

Though either of the other two options (a robot-led mission or a manned

repair mission using a space shuttle) would also allow the tradition of

Hubble-generated science to continue, HOP is unique in that it is not
dependent upon manned servicing, robotic technology or the need to
reach
Hubble Space Telescope before its demise. Most exciting of all,
however, is
that HOP would enable a dramatic extension of Hubble's science program
via
its VWFI camera.

"HOP can address three of the most central intellectual issues of our
age:
the nature of dark energy, the nature and distribution of dark matter,
and
the prevalance of planets, including earths, around other stars,"
Norman
stated. "The decision before us is obvious. We must continue with the
Hubble adventure to explore these great questions further, to
understand
more fully our remarkable universe and our place in it. We must do this

with intense determination and energy, and thus continue to inspire new

generations with the wonder and thrill of exploration and discovery."

The Hubble Origins Probe study was funded by NASA.
###

Related link:
Hubble Origins Probe:
http://www.pha.jhu.edu/hop

 




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