Nasa Scientists Fix Hubble Telescope by Turning It Off and on Again
NASA is struggling to fix a computer glitch that has sidelined the iconic Hubble Space Telescope. While the problem is an uncomfortable reminder of the crumbling observatory's eventual mortality, engineers are confident they'll take it back upwardly and running soon.
"Hubble is arguably the virtually important asset in the NASA's astrophysics portfolio, and it'southward been doing world-breaking scientific discipline for over 30 years now," Paul Hertz, director of astrophysics at NASA Headquarters, said Wednesday. "And we're counting on it operating for many years more."
The problem cropped upward June xiii when the telescope'due south musical instrument-overseer payload reckoner suddenly stopped working. That triggered protective "prophylactic fashion" software that halted operations and finer put the telescope in a state of electronic hibernation awaiting analysis on the ground.
Since so, engineers have been working to identify which component in the Scientific discipline Musical instrument Command and Data Handling — SI C&DH — system is not working properly, determine if information technology tin be recovered or whether to switch over to a backup.
"The slap-up thing nearly Hubble is all the redundancy we built in," Hertz said in a telephone interview. "Nosotros're all confident that once they've identified which component it is that isn't working, we'll switch over to the redundant version of that component."
While it sounds straightforward, NASA is taking no chances with one of the virtually scientifically productive spacecraft in the agency'south inventory. Hertz said he expects it to have a few weeks to fully resolve the problem and return Hubble to science operations.
"Because it's so important, nosotros're making certain that the troubleshooting team is taking every opportunity to exist careful," he said. "And so, they are over-analyzing all the information they have, they are developing conclusion trees and then working through a list of tests ... so they can isolate which particular component it is."
Once the culprit is identified and a fix implemented, "we'll bring the instruments dorsum up and get back to science," he said. "Because of all that redundancy, we're all very confident that nosotros'll become Hubble back to operating."
Astronomer Adam Riess, who shared the 2011 Nobel Prize in physics for piece of work he did using Hubble to help confirm the accelerating expansion of the universe, certainly hopes so.
"HST is THE workhorse for me and the kind of research I do," he said in an email exchange. "When information technology goes offline it makes you reflect on just how invaluable information technology has been (equally an interlude between your prayers that it comes dorsum to life soon!).
"Hubble has been a cat of nine lives, and nosotros hope it'southward got a couple left in its tank."
The SI C&DH payload estimator system is made up of 14 components that command the telescope's science instruments, format and temporarily store their data and then help route that data to the ground. Ii fully redundant systems are in place, either one of which tin can operate Hubble's instruments.
The original 1980s-era hardware operated for 18 years, from launch until 2008, when 1 of its two processors failed. The telescope was successfully switched to the fill-in, merely NASA managers decided to replace the entire arrangement during the terminal shuttle servicing mission in 2009 to restore the lost redundancy.
I data processing channel, or "string," worked from then until the malfunction before this calendar month. Components in the backup system take non been turned on since launch 12 years ago.
"This is the computer that queries all the instruments, grabs the data that they've taken out of the instrument memory, packs it upward into the SI C&DH retention, and then hands these packets off to the spacecraft, which puts them in the telemetry stream and sends them downwards to Earth," Hertz said.
"If it's non working, you can't get whatsoever information out of the instruments. Considering it's then necessary, that's why it'southward fully redundant."
Engineers initially suspected the trouble involved one of four 64K complementary metal-oxide semiconductor — CMOS — memory modules shared past the computer strings.
Merely one module is used at a time and shortly after the shutdown, engineers attempted to restart the figurer using a different memory bank and then once again with the original. Just the computer failed to kickoff.
Diagnostic information from the attempts indicated the memory issue may be symptomatic of a problem in a unlike role of the computer system.
One possibility is a standard interface unit, or STINT, that routes data betwixt the reckoner's primal processing module and other components. Another possible culprit is the cardinal processor itself. Engineers currently are running tests to pinpoint the problem area and come upwards with a gear up.
Depending on the results, they could endeavor to switch over to the STINT and central processor in the backup payload computer string, also built using 1980s-era hardware. The backup components all passed their initial pre-launch tests and engineers are confident they will piece of work if needed now.
"Nosotros're professional worrywarts," Hertz said. "So I think it would be overstating to say nobody has concerns. Just what we do know is that a dozen or so times during the lifetime of Hubble (protective software) has turned components on and off because of a problem that is autonomously detected.
"We oasis't had any problems like that with turning things on and off on Hubble, and and so we don't anticipate that problem this time."
Supreme Court backs cheerleader in free voice communication case
Biden rolling out gun violence prevention strategy
Cheerleader wins Supreme Courtroom instance over social media posts
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/nasa-working-fix-hubble-space-173751567.html
0 Response to "Nasa Scientists Fix Hubble Telescope by Turning It Off and on Again"
Postar um comentário