END OF THE ISS

[beamish]

Oooh I don't know , come 2020 they'll be other forms of orbit payload delivery systems in place, cash strapped US of A

" Ebay Listing- 1x Space station, one careful owner , average mileage, full service history, sold as seen ,buyer collects -sorry no returns "

[Weebz]

Does Hubble suffer orbital decay? Its an extra 200 odd km further out than the ISS isn't it?

[Sam]

I hope they don't stuff up the de-orbit, I wouldn't want something that big crashing in my paddock.

[Superewza]

It's worth noting that every time i've heard the 'until 2020' date mentioned on NASA TV it's always been preceded by 'and probably/hopefully beyond'.

Still, will be a massive shame but what's the alternative? Don't see how we could bring it back down safely - and moving it all into an orbit free from atmospheric drag would require a huge Delta-V. Maybe with ion engines it would be possible... but nobody would consider it worth it when that money could be spent on making something new.

[Stu]

Weebz, yes Hubble orbit does decay. The shuttle gave it a boost whenever it went to service it. I guess last time they put it high enough to last until it ends its life. I think they put a rocket pack on it so that they can de orbit it when they need to. That really will be a sad day, particularly as I think they have cancelled the replacement.

Search for 'hubble orbit altitude' on google and the first listing seems to be a .pdf giving details

Stu

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