The Hubble Space Telescope has temporarily halted its operations and entered a safe mode after encountering ongoing malfunctions in one of its three functioning gyroscopes. This status update has been officially published by the Space Agency’s information portal, confirming that the gyroscope system is the source of the current trouble.
These gyroscopes are critical components on the orbiting observatory. They measure rotation speed and, together with a larger attitude control system, help determine the telescope’s orientation in space. Their accuracy is essential for pointing the instruments toward distant galaxies, nebulae, and other celestial targets.
On November 19, operators observed a major device malfunction. The task force managed to restart Hubble and resume its activities, but on November 21 the telescope re-entered safe mode due to the same issue. After additional repairs, the observatory briefly returned to science operations, only to have research activities interrupted again on November 23 because a gyroscope proved unstable.
Currently, the Hubble team is conducting a series of tests to characterize the problem and explore practical solutions. There is a contingency plan to reconfigure the spacecraft to rely on a single gyroscope if that becomes necessary to maintain safe and stable operations.
NASA has noted that the telescope’s other scientific instruments remain functional and continue to collect data where possible, ensuring that valuable observations can proceed within the constraints set by the gyroscope issue.
In related efforts, scientists have previously used the Hubble telescope to capture notable discoveries, such as the detailed imaging of a rare radio galaxy that highlighted unique features of galactic evolution and radio emission in the universe. This ongoing situation underscores Hubble’s enduring importance for astronomy while technicians work to restore full, reliable attitude control.
Source attribution: NASA.