Nasa announced that it would discontinue servicing the Hubble telescope and allow it to fall to the earth. And, the people spoke!
"They are enormously concerned, they are perplexed, they are angry," [Bruce] Margon said. "They ask 'What percentage of the NASA budget is this?' And we tell them it's about 1 percent."The Baltimore-based institute will set up a Web site to take suggestions from the public, he said.
The suggestions started arriving after NASA said last week it won't send the space shuttle in 2006 to service the Hubble, a mission considered essential to enable the orbiting telescope to continue operating. The Hubble has revolutionized the study of astronomy with its striking images of the universe. ...
Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., the ranking minority member of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees NASA's budget, said in a letter to NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe on Wednesday ... "I ask you to reconsider your decision and appoint an independent panel of outside experts to fully review and assess all of the issues surrounding another Hubble servicing mission." Link.
For some sample images visit the Hubblesite Gallery.
NASA has a tin ear when it comes to PR.
Posted by: Redman | January 27, 2004 at 10:36 AM
Redman, it may be one of those left-brain, right-brain things. But, at least they are trying.
Posted by: George | January 27, 2004 at 03:28 PM