According to Gizmodo, since its launch in April 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope has become a classic window for mankind to observe the universe, capturing stunning images of countless galaxies and black holes. However,This distinguished "space veteran" is facing a severe existential crisis - its orbital altitude continues to decline, and without intervention, it may fall into the atmosphere and disintegrate as early as 2029.
Data shows that Hubble's orbital altitude was about 579 kilometers when it was launched. It has now dropped to about 525 kilometers, and the decay rate is faster than expected. The main reason for this trend is the unusually active solar activity in recent years.
Strong solar flux will cause the Earth's upper atmosphere to heat and expand, thereby significantly increasing the atmospheric drag Hubble encounters when orbiting in low-Earth orbit, like an invisible hand constantly pulling it toward the Earth.Once the altitude drops below about 400 kilometers, its time in orbit will be less than a year, and any rescue will be difficult to achieve by then.
NASA collaborated with SpaceX in 2022 to study the possibility of using the Dragon spacecraft to push Hubble back to its original orbit of about 600 kilometers to extend its life.
However, there has been no substantial progress in the plan so far, and NASA has not announced any formal mission arrangements.In the absence of official rescue, the scientific community has to face the reality that Hubble may retire early, fearing that this will cause a gap in far-reaching cosmic observation capabilities.
At the same time, civil society has brought new hope. The "Lazuli" space telescope project, funded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, is scheduled to launch in 2028. It will be the first fully privately funded space telescope to have a mirror size similar to Hubble and be equipped with more advanced modern instruments.
