Astro 2 In Orbit
Explanation:
Six
years ago, a cluster of three ultraviolet telescopes
flew into orbit on
the
Astro-2 mission aboard the space shuttle
Endeavour.
Seen here perched in Endeavour's payload bay
about 350 kilometers above the Australian desert are
the Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope
(
HUT), the
Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope
(
UIT),
and the
Wisconsin Ultraviolet Photo-Polarimeter Experiment
(
WUPPE).
HUT is in front of the other instruments with a silver, conical-shaped
star tracker at the left of
the
telescope cluster.
The ultraviolet region of the
electromagnetic spectrum lies
at wavelengths shorter than blue light and can
not be seen by human eyes.
Almost all ultraviolet light
from the cosmos is impossible
to detect at the Earth's surface because it is absorbed
by
atmospheric ozone.
But cruising high above the clouds and protective atmosphere,
these instruments could
explore the
universe
at wavelengths
beyond the blue.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
