Science - Hubble To be Repaired in 2007

Oustanding news. NASA has decided to give the go-ahead with a Hubble Telescope repair mission next year between ISS construction missions. The mission could feature as many as five spacewalks by astronauts, and extend the telescope's mission to 2013, when a new space observatory, the James Webb, will be launched.

"Astronomers hope the decision means Hubble could still be in operation by 2013 when NASA’s next great observatory — the James Webb Space Telescope — is slated to fly. Hubble’s visible and ultraviolet observations will not be duplicated by JWST, which will scan primarily in the infrared wavelengths, researchers said."

Astronauts will install a new camera, replace batteries and insulation, as well as replace two critical gyroscopes and a guidance sensor, and boost the satellite's orbit using the shuttle's engines.