NASA hails Hubble repair success, plans eight shuttle flights in 1994

Abstract

Completing a mission that riveted attention around the world, space shuttle Endeavour landed at Kennedy Space Center in Florida in mid-December after 11 days in Earth orbit—five of them filled with spectacular space walks by astronauts to repair and service the Hubble Space Telescope. This dramatic mission put a successful cap on the National Aeronautics & Space Administration's program of seven shuttle flights in 1993, several of which were troubled by technical glitches and delays. And the success laid a solid foundation for an ambitious slate of eight shuttle flights that NASA plans this year. We're absolutely elated about Endeavour's flight, says NASA associate administrator Wesley T. Huntress Jr., who oversees space science programs. It was a mission where everything that the agency does came together. Launched April 24, 1990, Hubble is designed to be the most powerful astronomical observatory ever built, far surpassing ground-based observatories and helping to answer key questions in astronomy, ...