On Sunday 13 June, the telescope's payload computer went offline, and engineers here on Earth are currently performing operations to get it up and run

Hubble's Main Computer Is Offline, And NASA Is Desperately Attempting to Fix It

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2021-06-21 14:00:04

On Sunday 13 June, the telescope's payload computer went offline, and engineers here on Earth are currently performing operations to get it up and running again.

The payload computer, as you might expect, is vital to Hubble's continued science operations. It's the 'brains' of the instrument, coordinating and controlling the various instruments with which Hubble is equipped. It also monitors the telescope for issues.

Initially, NASA engineers speculated that the cause of the halt was a degrading memory module. An attempt to restart the computer failed, so, on Wednesday 16 June, the Hubble operations team attempted to switch to a backup memory module.

"Another attempt was conducted on both modules Thursday evening to obtain more diagnostic information while again trying to bring those memory modules online. However, those attempts were not successful."

It's not entirely unexpected that Hubble might be experiencing a few aches and pains. The space telescope, launched in 1990, has been operating for over 30 years at this point, undergoing several mission extensions. Its most recent (and final) service mission took place in 2009, and it's only a matter of time before something wears out beyond repair.