Webb: Using Sci-fi to build a better Hubble
Few could argue that Hubble is the ‘daddy’ of all space telescopes. In its twenty years of operation, it has pushed back the boundaries of astronomy and physics, sent back images that have captured the imagination of an entire planet and provided PC screen savers to a generation. But all good things come to an end and, although more powerful than ever, Hubble’s days are numbered and its successor is waiting in the wings.
Orion, the hunter, has stalked the skies since before the memory of man. His bronze club, held aloft, drips with the blood of his underworld quarry while around his waist, hanging in anticipation, is his hunter’s sword. Well, that’s how the ancients saw the constellation of Orion. We’ve learned a little about the stellar warrior since then. His famous sword (a chain of three stars also known as Orion’s belt), rather than being a life-taker, is actually a life giver.
In March last year, Nasa’s Kepler space telescope was sent into space with the trivial task of finding Earth-like rocky planets with orbits close enough to their sun to be warm but no so close that old Lucifer might holiday there. In short, it was sent up to find planets that could (potentially) be home to extraterrestrial life. 