For thirty-six years Hubble has looked outward from low Earth orbit, and now the question of its future has been handed to whoever can afford to answer it. NASA, which once sent shuttles to lift the telescope higher, has asked private companies whether they can reach it before it sinks too far to save, with responses due at the end of November. Nothing is funded and nothing is promised, but the request marks a turn from ambition to a sober test of whether commercial servicing has matured enough to keep an old instrument of discovery aloft.
NASA Seeks Commercial Ideas to Rescue Hubble From Reentry, Again
It has no propulsion, and it has been sinking since 2009
Mark
Why is NASA asking again when the 2022 effort went nowhere?
Mimi
The industry looks different now. Northrop Grumman launched a sophisticated robotic servicer this year, and Astroscale and Starfish hold servicing demo contracts. Isaacman, who pitched his own mission in 2022, now runs the agency.
Luke
But an RFI is only a question. NASA says it isn't committing to buy anything, and no funding is allocated.
Mark
What did Swift teach them?
Mimi
That a rescue can be built fast and cheap. Katalyst had $30 million and nine months, launched on time, and got within about 6 miles of Swift.
Luke
It didn't capture it, though. Power and reaction control problems stopped the approach. So Swift shows speed is possible, not that capture works.
Mark
Why not just fly astronauts?
Mimi
Crew Dragon is due to retire by 2030, so that route is unlikely. Isaacman expects robotics companies to respond.
Luke
And the 2033 or 2034 reentry date is a forecast. Solar activity can move it, so the real deadline is uncertain.
Mark
Can Webb or Roman replace Hubble?
Mimi
Not one for one. They work in the infrared, while Hubble sees visible and ultraviolet light, and a successor for that isn't expected until the 2040s.
Il Polso
- Hubble is sinking slowly, having lost roughly 90 kilometers of altitude over 24 years with no way to hold its height.
- NASA has put out a call for commercial rescue ideas, with responses due November 30 and a target of reaching the telescope by 2032.
- No money is yet allocated and no buyer is committed, so the effort hangs on whether companies can prove a realistic plan and price.
- The Swift rescue, completed on a $30 million budget, offers a template, but Hubble is far larger and more valuable, raising the stakes.
For thirty-six years Hubble has looked outward from low Earth orbit, and now the question of its future has been handed to whoever can afford to answer it. NASA, which once sent shuttles to lift the telescope higher, has asked private companies whether they can reach it before it sinks too far to save, with responses due at the end of November. Nothing is funded and nothing is promised, but the request marks a turn from ambition to a sober test of whether commercial servicing has matured enough to keep an old instrument of discovery aloft.
On Thursday, NASA asked the commercial space industry a blunt question: can anyone reach the Hubble Space Telescope before it falls out of the sky? The agency issued a Request for Information seeking ways to reboost, service, or safely bring down the observatory, with responses due November 30.
Hubble has spent 36 years in orbit and still serves astronomers well, but it has no propulsion of its own and cannot hold its altitude. The last boost came in 2002 from a shuttle visit, and the shuttle fleet retired in 2011 without another lift. Since then the telescope has been sinking, and forecasters expect reentry in 2033 or 2034 without intervention.
NASA wants to know whether a contractor can capture Hubble and raise it to at least 600 kilometers by 2032, without harming it. A boost of that size could keep the telescope up for another quarter century. But NASA is not committing to buy such a mission, and no funding exists yet. Earlier proposals, including a 2022 crewed idea and a round of industry responses, never flew.
The landscape has shifted. Jared Isaacman, once a private proposer, now leads NASA, and commercial servicing demonstrations are advancing. The recent Swift rescue, where startup Katalyst got within about 10 kilometers before ground teams stopped, showed that servicing can be done for tens of millions rather than billions. Hubble, however, will demand far more than that budget and timeline.
There is no replacement waiting in the wings. Hubble sees in visible and ultraviolet light, and its successor for those wavelengths is decades away. The coming weeks will reveal whether anyone can reach the telescope in time, at a price NASA can afford.
On Thursday, NASA put a question to the commercial space industry: can anyone get to the Hubble Space Telescope before it falls out of the sky? The agency issued a Request for Information asking companies how they might reboost, service, or safely bring down the observatory. Responses are due November 30.
Hubble has spent 36 years in orbit and still serves astronomers well, but it cannot hold its altitude. It has no propulsion of its own. NASA last raised its orbit in 2002, when the Space Shuttle Columbia visited on a servicing mission. The final shuttle servicing flight, in 2009, did not reboost it, and the shuttle fleet retired two years later. Since then the telescope has been sinking with no way to arrest the descent. It has taken 24 years to glide from 362 miles (583 km) to roughly 292 miles (470 km). Orbital dynamicists expect reentry in 2033 or 2034 without intervention, though solar activity can shift that forecast.
The RFI asks for information on current and near-term capabilities to capture Hubble and lift it to at least 373 miles (600 km), to enhance its performance, or to guide it to a controlled reentry. NASA wrote that the mission "must not harm" the telescope and is expected to occur by 2032. The contractor would supply the launch vehicle, servicing spacecraft, and mission operations, plus crew if applicable. A boost to 600 km would likely keep Hubble up for at least 25 more years.
NASA is not committing to buy a rescue, and it has no funding allocated for one. Officials want to learn who is interested, what it would cost, and which companies have a realistic chance of arriving in time.
The idea has been tried before. In 2022, billionaire commercial astronaut Jared Isaacman approached NASA about a crewed servicing mission on SpaceX's Dragon, which he proposed to fund largely himself. It would have raised Hubble by at least 30 miles (50 km). Engineers also studied using Dragon to attach a pod with new gyroscopes to address the telescope's failing pointing system. That same year NASA issued an RFI and received eight responses, including a joint robotic proposal from Astroscale and Momentus. In 2024, officials said they would pursue a reboost, but Mark Clampin, then head of NASA's astrophysics division, described the Isaacman and SpaceX plans as "really just notional concepts." Nothing flew.
By 2026 the picture has changed. Isaacman is now NASA administrator. Northrop Grumman launched an advanced robotic servicing satellite this year in partnership with DARPA, and Astroscale and Starfish Space hold servicing and refueling demonstration contracts with the US Space Force and NASA.
The agency's recent experience with the Swift telescope informs the effort. Last year NASA gave startup Katalyst Space Technologies a $30 million contract and nine months to build a spacecraft that could reach Swift, grab it, and push it higher. Katalyst built and launched on time and came within about 6 miles (10 km) of Swift. Ground teams chose not to close further after problems with the spacecraft's power and reaction control systems. The attempt suggested servicing need not cost billions, as one canceled NASA demonstration had been projected to. But Hubble is far more valuable, and NASA expects a Hubble contractor would need more than $30 million and nine months.
A crewed mission looks unlikely now, since SpaceX plans to retire its Crew Dragon fleet by 2030. Isaacman wrote on X that he expects the RFI to draw interest from robotics companies. In a NASA statement he said extending Hubble's life would mean more discoveries and that the agency owes taxpayers and scientists a look at cost-effective options. Nicky Fox, NASA's associate administrator for science, said commercial capabilities for capture and servicing have advanced rapidly.
There is no direct replacement waiting. Hubble observes in visible and ultraviolet light, while Webb and Roman look into the infrared. An improvement on Hubble's vision is not expected until NASA's Habitable Worlds Observatory in the 2040s. After November 30, the responses will show whether anyone can reach Hubble by 2032 at a price NASA can fund.
Citazioni salienti
If there are innovative and cost-effective ways to extend the life of an asset already on orbit, we owe it to the American taxpayer and the scientific community to explore them.— Jared Isaacman, NASA administrator
Commercial industry has rapidly evolved in recent years to offer new capabilities for in-space satellite capture and servicing.— Nicky Fox, NASA associate administrator for science
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