Thaindian News

Washington, Feb 26 (ANI): Reports indicate that the NASA that fixed the Hubble Space Telescope is now working to develop robotic satellite repair technology.

According to a report in Discovery News, the goal of the NASA project is to demonstrate to commercial firms the feasibility of refueling, repairing and servicing spacecraft in orbit.

There are more than 360 operational commercial satellites and hundreds of government spacecraft currently in orbit, many of which will run out of fuel long before they sustain electronics or other systems failures.

“It’s our idea to stimulate a pathfinder kind of mission,” said Frank Cepolina, a Hubble mission development manager now spearheading NASA’s new Satellite Servicing Development Office at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

“Once we’re done, commercial takes over,” he said.

The first of what could be several demonstration missions is expected to fly on the International Space Station sometime next year.

The plan is to use Dextre, the station’s Canadian-built robot, to demonstrate autonomous orbital refueling.

Outfitted with smart sensors and tools, Dextre would basically pump fuel through tank valves that are identical to equipment flying on hundreds of satellites today.

The robot would have to remove insulation, disconnect safety wires and prepare ports as part of the job.

“We want to demonstrate our ability to get up there…and pass fuel into valves and into a receiving tank, and do this test in many configurations, many different times,” said Cepolina.

Dextre already has been through the paces. Before it was launched to the space station, the Hubble team used it to test robotic servicing options for fixing the telescope. (ANI)