NASA Seeks Ideas to Save Hubble Before It Falls From Orbit in 2033 or 2034

NASA has reopened the question of how to keep the Hubble Space Telescope alive. On Oct. 29, the agency issued a request for information asking companies what they could do to service the observatory, according to Space.com. Hubble is working well, but its orbit is slowly decaying, and it is on track to fall into Earth's atmosphere in roughly six years.

The request is a call for ideas, not a decision to launch a mission. It covers options such as raising Hubble's orbit or a mission that would improve what the telescope can do. It also allows for a safe, controlled reentry or disposal in orbit at the end of its life.

What NASA is asking for and the deadline it faces

Atmospheric drag is pulling Hubble down. Space.com reported that, left alone, the telescope will enter the atmosphere in 2033 or 2034. The agency stated that any servicing attempt would therefore need to happen in 2032.

Jared Isaacman, who became NASA administrator in December 2025, said in an Oct. 30 agency statement that Hubble's scientific output means NASA should look at every reasonable chance to keep it working as long as possible. He tied that especially to the possibility that a rescue could cost less than launching a different mission. In a post on X the same day, he said the options are still worth exploring and that the effort was worthwhile because "Hubble deserves it."

How the Hubble rescue idea got here

• April 1990: Hubble launches in partnership with the European Space Agency.
• 2009: Astronauts carry out the fifth and most recent servicing visit, flown on a space shuttle.
• 2022: Isaacman, then a billionaire tech entrepreneur, proposes using SpaceX hardware for a Hubble-servicing mission. NASA declines, citing possible risks to the healthy telescope.
• December 2025: Isaacman becomes NASA administrator.
• Oct. 29: NASA issues the request for information on in-space servicing.
• Oct. 30: Isaacman says in a statement and on X that the agency should pursue options. He notes NASA had earlier considered a far lower-cost solution and says of that effort: "That was then."

A recent rescue attempt that fell short

Space.com pointed to a related effort this year. NASA worked with Katalyst Space Technologies on a $30 million mission to lift the orbit of the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, which is also sinking because of drag. The mission was developed quickly because heightened solar activity had expanded Earth's atmosphere and increased that drag.

Katalyst's LINK spacecraft launched successfully this summer, but control problems kept it from meeting up with Swift. Space.com reported that Swift was expected to reenter on Nov. 4 after 22 years of operations, far beyond its two-year design life.

Why it matters: what Hubble still delivers

Hubble is not a retired instrument that people want to preserve for sentimental reasons alone. According to Space.com, NASA figures suggest its observations have produced at least 23,000 scientific papers. The agency said in September that astronomers ask for about seven times as much observing time as is available each year.

The telescope also helped show that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, a discovery that won the Nobel Prize. It has contributed findings on planets, galaxies and stars, and it often works alongside other telescopes. For the public, it is the source of widely known images such as the Eagle Nebula's "Pillars of Creation," which has been revisited several times over the decades.

If no rescue happens, Hubble's observations would end when it comes down, or earlier if NASA chose a controlled reentry. A successful servicing mission could extend that run, though the outcome of NASA's inquiry is not known.

What happens next

NASA will now see what proposals industry sends back. The agency has not committed to a mission, and the request leaves open the possibility of a controlled end for the telescope. Any mission to extend Hubble's life would have to be ready for 2032, the year the agency identified for servicing.

The earlier Swift attempt shows the risk of a rescue. The Hubble discussion also differs in one respect noted by Space.com: NASA turned down a servicing proposal in 2022 over risks to the healthy telescope, and now the agency is asking for ideas again.

Around Prague, based on reporting by Space.com