Question from ASTRO

Willie Koorts (wpk@saao.ac.za)
Tue, 10 Dec 1996 08:55:08 +0200 (GMT+0200)

Hi Folks

Someone asked this on the ASTRO mailing list.  Any takers?

Willie

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 09 Dec 1996 13:02:17 -0400
From: Andres Valencia <avalencia@true.net>
To: astro@store-forward.mindspring.com
Subject: Re: Server mail loss..

Hello Friends,

According to Eric J. Chaisson in "The Hubble Wars";  HST was down to a
356 miles orbit when serviced by Space Shuttle Endeavor, STS-61, on Decembe=
r
4, 1994 ("it had fallen some 25 miles in 43 months [since it was originally
deployed at 380 miles on April 24, 1990 by the Space Shuttle Discovery,
STS-31]").
I'm writing (for ARVAL's WWW site):
"HST's initial orbit at 380 miles, is low enough to be somewhat affected by
atmospheric drag, lowering it
around half a mile per month, depending on Solar activity (which affects ou=
r
atmosphere's
extension) and the space craft's in-orbit attitude.
After some 6 years or so, the HST will lower to 325 miles and will have to
be re-deployed in a
higher orbit."

Anybody knows when this re-deployment is planned to occur, and to what heig=
ht?
Wasn't it low enough to require this in 1996?
Was it done in 1994?


Saludos, (and Thanks)
Andr=E9s