Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
The managers of the Hubble Space Telescope's observation schedule are re-examining and reprioritizing requests for time on the telescope in light of a recent failure that has left its primary spectrograph inoperative. On Aug. 3, the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) instrument onboard Hubble stopped working, most likely because of a failed power supply. Installed by astronauts during the second Hubble servicing mission in 1997, the STIS had exceeded its five-year design life, according to NASA.
NASA's new technology push in nuclear-electric propulsion and power systems for spacecraft is sparking new interest in the possibility of a probe that could travel beyond the boundaries of our solar system within 15-20 years of launch.
After encountering "significant technical challenges," NASA is abandoning attempts to develop a rigid overwrap to patch large holes in the space shuttle's reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC) panels in the event of damage during flight, and instead is pursuing other methods that probably won't be ready in time for the shuttle's return to flight, according to agency officials.
