Aberdeen Chapter update.

• Author: Skillman, Jean
• Position: Ndia news

The Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) Chapter recently was briefed on the NASA Hubble Space Telescope program. Massimo Stiavelli, of the Space Telescope Science Institute, reviewed the history, capabilities and successes of the Hubble telescope. He also presented an overview of the upcoming replacement for the Hubble, the James Webb Space telescope.

The Webb is an infrared-optimized telescope that can detect heat in addition to visible light. The primary mirror is six meters in diameter when deployed, and is made up of several segments that are unfolded and aligned after launch.

The Hubble Space Telescope will be retired in 2010, after 20 years of service. Hubble has taken in excess of 100,000 astronomical images and has revolutionized most fields in astronomy. Examples of its main discoveries include black holes in nearby galaxies, outlining the structure of the universe and detection of the atmosphere of a planet circling...