HST: 100,000 Orbits and Going!

The Hubble Space Telescope will complete 100,000 orbits around the Earth on August 11, 2008 at 7:42 a.m. EDT logging an approximate 2.72 billion miles since the day it was launched on April 24, 1990 aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery.

The 100,000 orbit milestone for the Hubble Space Telescope will be marked by the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) scientists by being available for commentary at 1:00 a.m. EDT on August 11 and providing a new commemorative image from Hubble.

The Hubble Space Telescope is set to get new parts and a new lease on life in October when the Space Shuttle Atlantis zooms to orbit with spacewalking astronauts for a final repair mission giving the instrument and scientists the ability to see further into deep space than ever it has before.