A reminder that the Atlantis Shuttle mission to service — for the very last time — the Hubble Space Telescope is scheduled to launch on Monday at 2:01 p.m. Eastern time (18:01 GMT).
I’ll be covering the launch live on Twitter using my BANews account (though feel free to follow my main BadAstronomer feed as well). You can also watch the launch live on NASA TV.
If you went to BadAstronomy.com and found yourself here, never fear: the BA Blog has moved to its new home at Discover Blogs. The original BA site (with the Moon Hoax debunking and all that) is still online, too.
Phil Plait, the creator of Bad Astronomy, is an astronomer, lecturer, and author. After ten years working on Hubble Space Telescope and six more working on astronomy education, he struck out on his own as a writer. He has written two books, dozens of magazine articles, and 12 bazillion blog articles. He is a skeptic, and fights misuses of science as well as praising the wonder of real science.
Contact me: The Bad Astronomer "at" gmail "dot" com
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May 10th, 2009 at 1:13 pm
90% good weather in Florida! (But probably Spain could abord the launch, because it’s the only backup landing side and could have some showers….)
GO ATLANTIS GO!
This will be an awesome mission, NASA TV will be running 24/7
!
May 10th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
When I read the title, I thought you meant it was to be in the middle of the night, but then reading further I realized that you meant 14:01 Eastern Daylight Time. (I’m assuming you don’t mean Ephemeris Time.)
BTW, it will also be shown live on the Science Channel, in HD.
May 10th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Heading to Titusville soon for the launch (scored tickets!) and set @BANews, @badastronomer and @nasa to hit my phone with updates.
Keep us space fans posted!
May 10th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
Finally! The day has come! Oh man did I wait for this.
Go! For great justice!
May 10th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
The Science Channel has had a countdown bug on the screen for days — I had been planning to watch it anyway but it blocks so much of the screen (and is animated!) and I find it irritating as hell.
May 10th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
2:01 pm? What an odd time. There must be a good reason for the extra :01…. But what is it?
May 10th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Go Atlantis – and come back safe & sound!
May 10th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
I really wish I could afford to go see a shuttle launch before the program is over. It may have been full of problems, but it has been the major method of space transport in my generation with all it’s victories and failures. On this particular day I’ll be working, so thx for tweeting it, Phil. I can check those every few minutes!
Fly safe, Atlantis…may your mission be smooth and successful, and we’ll see you on the runway!
May 10th, 2009 at 2:52 pm
Hi Phil,
I think it would be better if you gave the time in GMT, as that is better known and easy to calculate local time from.
I am in New Zealand and 12 hours ahead of GMT.
It is hard to keep track of the many different time zones used in the USA.
I must admit I’m waiting for a successful conclusion of this mission with bated breath!
If this was a film script, then:
(1) The Hubble would be successfully serviced, but after difficulties, brilliant improvisation, and some rule breaking.
(2) The first crew would need to be rescued by the second shuttle, much drama, but mostly successful.
(3) The woman who thought up the improvisation to save the Hubble, when they had hit a major problem, would die dramatically. But not before she broadcast to the world that saving the Hubble was worth the risk to her life and hoped it would inspire her own beloved children.
(4) The surviving crew said they would be prepared to do it again, and would be happy to make themselves available for a further Hubble mission, should one be required.
(5) The male commander of the first shuttle would have had a crisis, and be privately helped get over it by the woman who died.
(6) The captain of the second shutle would have been the woman’s husband.
(7) The president of the USA, by public demand, would substantially increase NASA’s budget and commit to a bold mission to Mars, similar to Kennedy’s about the moon.
(8) The world would unite behind the Mars mission…
Though, I hope that the actual mission is uneventful; other than successful in completing its mission objectives and being a great inspiration to the whole of mankind. Also that the second shuttle would not be required.
Thanks,
Gavin
May 10th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
I have class at that time. Why couldn’t it get out half hour earlier?
May 10th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
What are the plans to replace Hubble since it won’t be maintained anymore?
How long do they think Hubble will remain useful?
To me, Hubble is like that first pair of glasses that fixes your vision, there might be a better pair on the way, but you still keep the old ones ‘just in case’. Maybe it could be attached to the ISS…
May 10th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
@Wendy:
Glad you asked about that extra minute! It has to do with the secret Masonic rituals NASA performs before each mission. Plus, the number 33 plays prominent in this launch: 2:01… 2+1=3… now do that again and you get another 3, which, when you put the 2 3’s together gives you 33.
Oh Crap! I knew it would happen one day! I’m channeling Hoagland… and he’s still alive!
Actually, I believe the timing of the launch has to take place at a precise time in order for the Shuttle to meet Hubble at a precise spot in orbit…
May 10th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
Science Channel will start a program, which will include the launch, at 1:30 p.m. eastern. They will cover the science, etc.
May 10th, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Sleepneed, cut class or walk out early. This is the major shuttle launch of the decade.
May 10th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
i might want to ask my science teacher to let me out early to watch the launch.
May 10th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Everybody keep your fingers crossed. When the mission is as important as this one I’m too nervous to watch. My oldest daughter will have her nose glued to the screen so I’ll get my updates from her.
May 10th, 2009 at 8:20 pm
@Wendy
I think 14:01 EDT is the time for an in-plane launch.
May 10th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
Just think what we’d have if the real shuttle imagined in 1970 had been built instead of this jury rigged contraption. Man it would have been great. Hope they get it right with the new system.
May 10th, 2009 at 11:56 pm
Glad I caught your post. I have 6 minutes to see the launch now!
May 11th, 2009 at 12:06 am
Actually, you said PM. Just looking at a quiet shot of the launch pad now. I should sleep.
May 11th, 2009 at 12:17 am
Do you realize that 24-hr time is entirely AM? 0AM… 2AM… 11AM…. 12AM… 15AM… 23AM. This is because there is only one meridian left, midnight, and when you get past it… you’re starting over. Don’t try to throw logic at it. It’s true. Trust me. Ante up.
That, in turn, means everything is morning. PM never happens.
I don’t like to get up in the morning, and, if trapped by circumstance, will mutate that into I don’t like to do work in the morning.
Therefore, I am casting my vote for the use of 24-hr time everywhere. I don’t care what zone, or if GMT/universal time is the choice, because it won’t matter. It’ll be morning everywhere all the time, and I can sleep in. No matter what time it is.
May 11th, 2009 at 1:56 am
@ Michael L :
I’m channeling Hoagland… and he’s still alive!
Yeah, but Hoagland’s been brain dead for many years now!
On a serious note : Best of luck to shuttle ‘Atlantis’ and the Hubble repair team. I’m hoping for the best for you. In my view this is the most significant shuttlemission in quite some time and Ireallyhope everythinggoe ssmoothlyand to plan. I’d love to see the Hubble Space telescope working for many decades to come.
The HST and shuttle are both superb wonders of modern technology. It’ll be a very sad day when they stop working / flying. Sadder yet if they haven’t been replaced by then by something even better.
I’ll also second the suggestion Marc made that the HST be attached to the ISS if that’s possible. It would make it easier to service in future wouldn’t it?
Otherwise, could’nt the HST be boosted to a higher orbit where it can remain intact for ages (& out of the worst of the space junk) after it stops working so it can be preserved for future generations?
Just having it re-enter our atmosphere and burn up when its done seems an awful waste and shame.
May 11th, 2009 at 1:57 am
Argh! Make that :
In my view this is the most significant shuttle mission in quite some time and I really hope everything goes smoothly and to plan.
I’d love to see the Hubble Space telescope working for many decades to come.
May 11th, 2009 at 1:58 am
YAY!
May 11th, 2009 at 2:42 am
Repair and upgrade mission. Too many people seem to think that this is just an expensive shuttle flight to replace some spark plugs.
May 11th, 2009 at 3:16 am
Actually, AM stands for Ante Meridiem, which is Latin for “before noon”, not after midnight, so 23AM is meaningless.
24-hour times are better, but apparently confusing for some Americans. Also, most of us probably don’t have a clue what UTC is in relation to our local time zone. (7 hours ahead of my time most of the year.)
I prefer decimal time, which astronomers have been using for centuries. For instance, the current Modified Julian Date is about 54962.4, the .4 being the fraction of the day elapsed since midnight UT, or 09:36, to be exact. (.0 = midnight, .5 = noon, etc.) The best part is that it looks just like the stardates on Star Trek!
Which puts the launch at stardate 54962.751.
May 11th, 2009 at 4:05 am
[...] and inks below. Click to clean the space debris before the Atlantis astronauts get [...]
May 11th, 2009 at 4:25 am
My son, at the age of five & a half good instantly translate between 12 & 24 hour notation – maybe because his mother is Chinese and he was being taught in Gaelic (native Irish language)?
I find 24 hour notation easier: no pesky AM & PM business! It easier to write 1730 than 5:30 PM.
May 11th, 2009 at 6:41 am
Farewell ‘Atlantis’.
Apparently (according to TV news report) this will be its last ever flight.
What will they do with the shuttle ‘Atlantis’ after its “retired” post this last (?) HST mission – does anyone know?
May 11th, 2009 at 6:43 am
I prefer the Japanese way of listing time :
year-month-date.
It just seems to make more sense. 24 hour time too removes any confusion & makes good sense.
May 11th, 2009 at 6:55 am
The Hubble can’t be attached to the ISS for a few reasons.
First, the ISS and HST have orbits which are angled to each other in such a way that it would take almost as much energy to get to one from the other as it would to get from the ground to either of them. You can’t just push it over like driving down the street, there’s a huge difference in movement vectors.
Secondly, the ISS would be a terrible environment for the Hubble. If you attached it directly to the station backplane, vibration in the ISS structure from pumps and people moving around would prevent the Hubble from getting a clear picture. Even if you didn’t hard-mount it, outgassing from the station and residue from station maneuvering thrusters would get into the Hubble, condense on the optics and fog images.
May 11th, 2009 at 7:04 am
BA, you may want to check this out – via the ‘80 beats’ blog is this news item on Obama reviewing NASA :
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/05/08/obama-orders-a-review-of-nasas-human-space-flight-program/
(If I can ever get this to work! Maybe it’ll go through moderating .. I’ve tried a few times to get it tocome through here via click on my name with the link in the website box but that does NOT seem to be working. Trying again ..)
PS. Second tiem I’m trying to post this. Sorry if it comes out twice .. didn’t seem to work the last time.
May 11th, 2009 at 7:49 am
For those watching the countdown I would recommend having this page open:
http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/countdown/count.html
It lists the times in the countdown and what happens when. Also describes all the TLAs.
May 11th, 2009 at 8:46 am
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_FsjS474GOsM/Sgg2K-M9C3I/AAAAAAAAAB0/l_FuLbkonq8/s1600-h/astro-DSCN0142.jpg
Astronauts!
May 11th, 2009 at 8:53 am
don’t forget the the Ariane 5 launch with Herschel & Planck in 3 days!
btw take a look at this video http://digg.com/d1qqEy looks really scary
May 11th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Somehow it never occurred to me to look before, but I see the ESA has its own TV service, although I can’t tell that they ever show anything live. They have something about Herschel-Planck tomorrow but I haven’t found any actual launch coverage:
http://television.esa.int
May 11th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
This is not Atlantis’s last flight. It is scheduled to fly again in November and then next year. If AMS is launched as the last shuttle flight (which NASA has recently said they intend to do, but it is not listed at, it would be Atlantis’s
turn again.
If you think of a satellite’s orbit as being an ellipse (almost circular for Hubble) in a fixed plane in space, and the Earth sitting inside the ellipse and rotating on its axis, then the best time to launch is when your launch site rotates through the plane. This happened today at 2:01 PM EDT. You can launch early or late, but it requires extra fuel to basically dog-leg into the right plane. For this mission, the launch window is about 60 minutes long, and they try to hit the
middle of it to save fuel. Today’s target was actually 20 minutes into the window, about 10 minutes before the “best” time, probably so they would have
more time to spare in the event of a minor last-minute problem.
May 19th, 2009 at 7:08 am
Okay, thanks for that Buzz Parsec.
I’m glad ‘Atlantis’ gets to rise again!
It was just what they said on the TV news and in the newspaper (print) with an atmospheric photo of the ‘Atlantis’ waiting on its launch pad with the sun setting at the bottom of the shot. Quite a moving image actually.
I usually find the media coverage of astronomy & space exploration pretty woeful but I must say they’ve done a fairly reasonable job this time so far ..