STS-125 Mission Sticker

STS-125 Mission Sticker

STS-125 will be the fifth and final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. The mission will be flown by Space Shuttle Atlantis. STS-125 has been delayed until at least May 2009 to prepare a second data handling unit replacement for the telescope. The current target date is May 12th. Atlantis will carry two new instruments to the HST, in addition to a replacement Fine Guidance Sensor, six new gyroscopes and batteries to allow the telescope to continue to function at least through 2013. The crew will also install a new thermal blanket layer to provide improved insulation, and a "Soft-Capture mechanism" to aid in the safe de-orbiting of the spacecraft by an unmanned spacecraft at the end of its operational lifespan. Otherwise known as Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission 4 (HST-SM4), the mission will mark the thirtieth flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis, the last planned manned mission to the space telescope, and the final flight of a Space Shuttle not related to the assembly of the International Space Station.

• Mission name STS-125
• Space Shuttle Atlantis
• Launch pad LC-39A
• Launch date May 12th. Launch Window: 60 minutes
• Mission duration 11 days