Plans for a Space Telescope

In the 1960s, NASA launched two small stargazing satellites, called Orbital Astronomical Observatories, into orbit around Earth. The first was launched in 1966 and the second in 1968. Other space probes and satellites also were sent on astronomy missions.

Astronomers still wanted a large space telescope. In 1977, the U. S. Congress approved the building of a space telescope. This time, the project went ahead. Some twelve countries and many contractors and specialists were involved in the design and construction of the observatory. By 1985, the space telescope was ready.

There was then a delay before Hubble could be sent into space. In 1986, the disastrous and fatal loss of the Space Shuttle Challenger led to the grounding of the Space Shuttle fleet for two years. It was 1990 before Hubble went into space, carried in the cargo bay of the Space Shuttle Discovery. On April 25, 1990, Hubble finally drifted free into orbit, ready to begin observations.