"Hubble - the Challenge and the Reward" featuring Claude Nicollier

This is the first public online event of SAIA - Swiss Astro Imaging Association.

Content

• Welcoming and short SAIA Introduction (approx. 5 minutes)
• Introduction (approx. 10-15 minutes): What is astrophysics and why do we go into space?
• Main part (approx. 25-40 minutes): Hubble mission: initial situation, risk, ascent, repair, benefit
• Final part (approx. 10-15 minutes): Other space telescopes in use (Webb, Gaia, etc.)
• Q&A with Claude Nicollier (approx. 15-30 minutes)

About Claude Nicollier

Claude Nicollier, Switzerland’s first astronaut, played a crucial role in the maintenance and enhancement of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) during his career with the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. As a mission specialist, Nicollier participated in four Space Shuttle missions, two of which involved servicing Hubble.

His most notable contribution came during STS-103 in December 1999, when he became the first European to perform a spacewalk. During this mission, he and his crew replaced crucial components of Hubble, including all six gyroscopes and a new computer, extending the telescope's operational life and enhancing its scientific capabilities.

Nicollier’s expertise in orbital operations and precision work in microgravity made him an invaluable asset to the Hubble servicing missions, ensuring that one of the most important observatories in human history continued to deliver groundbreaking discoveries about the universe.