|
Today, May 11, Science Channel will broadcast live coverage of the fourth and final space shuttle mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope with HUBBLE LIVE: THE FINAL MISSION at 1:30 PM (ET)/10:30 AM (PT). The network will also encore the live broadcast in primetime at 9 PM (ET) following the premiere of the all-new special THE ENDS OF THE EARTH: HUBBLE'S FINAL CHAPTER at 8 PM (ET).
Originating from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, Science Channel's live coverage of the launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis will feature in-depth, exclusive analysis from NASA astrophysicist and space telescope expert Dr. Kim Weaver and former NASA astronaut Paul William Richards. HUBBLE LIVE will also feature live NASA coverage from the launch site at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, and the Mission Control Center at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
"Science Channel is the home for live coverage of defining moments in science like this mission to repair one of NASA's historically important space exploration tools," said Debbie Myers, General Manager of Science Channel. "No other network lends expert perspective to these important scientific moments, or can explain what each means to the lives of viewers quite like the Science Channel."
The astronauts are scheduled to install a Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), a Cosmic Origins Spectograph (COS) and several other instruments — a level of repair never attempted before in space. If successful, the WFC3 will improve the telescope's sensitivity to visible, infrared and ultraviolet light by 10-30 times, and the COS will improve Hubble’s sensitivity by ten times. Since 1990 the Hubble Space Telescope has served as humanity's eye on the universe. The telescope has sent thousands of images back to Earth that have altered scientists' views of the cosmos and helped to answer important questions.
THE ENDS OF THE EARTH: HUBBLE'S FINAL CHAPTER explores the telescope's rich history with interviews from NASA astronauts Mike Massimino and John Grunsfeld, members of the seven person crew assigned to repair Hubble, and with never-before-seen high-definition footage of the underwater training the crew undertook for more than one year.
|