# NASA ponders a Hubble servicing mission or a controlled deorbit

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/nasa-ponders-a-hubble-servicing-mission-or-a-controlled-deorbit/
- Published: 2026-10-30T14:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-30T14:14:15+00:00
- Original publisher: The Register
- Original article: https://www.theregister.com/science/2026/10/30/nasa-ponders-a-hubble-servicing-mission-or-a-controlled-deorbit/5306622
- Topics: Business, Markets, Space, Technology

## Key points

- NASA is exploring commercial options to service Hubble.
- The telescope could re-enter by 2032.
- Options include boosting its orbit or controlled disposal.

## Summary

NASA is asking commercial space companies for information about servicing the Hubble Space Telescope, as the ageing observatory’s orbit gradually decays. The agency is weighing ways to extend Hubble’s working life or guide its eventual return to Earth, which could otherwise be uncontrolled.

The last astronaut servicing mission took place in 2009, and NASA estimates a 10 per cent chance Hubble will re-enter the atmosphere by September 2032, rising to 50 per cent by December 2033. A mission by 2032 could boost its orbit, improve its performance or arrange a controlled re-entry; NASA says it is seeking information, not proposals, and has given no budget. Hubble remains in high demand, with seven applications for every available observing slot, while no replacement is expected before the 2040s.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.