NASA has temporarily shut down the camera of one of its space-based telescopes after a power problem. The Chandra X-ray Observatory’s camera eye, which has been studying very hot regions of the universe for more than two decades, has stalled. The space agency said the telescope encountered a power supply problem with its High-Resolution Camera (HRC) instrument on February 9. NASA scientists are now analyzing the problem and determining the appropriate response to get the observatory to work as quickly as possible.
NASA He said he had not detected any problems with the normally functioning spacecraft so far. The Chandra X-ray Observatory, which was launched aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1999, has provided a wealth of images and data that have helped scientists better understand and unpack the universe’s many mysteries and evolution.
“On Wednesday, February 9, 2022, routine monitoring data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory indicated a power supply problem in the spacecraft’s high-resolution camera,” NASA Having said This week. Engineers working on the mission have halted science operations and put four science instruments into safe mode.
Separately, the Chandra X-ray Center director’s office issued an update on Twitter, saying the high-resolution camera was “operated after being discovered in an odd position”. It has been said in the notice that the reasons behind this are being investigated. Scientists are trying to restart operations early next week using a different instrument, called the Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrograph, or ACIS.
Chandra’s High Resolution Camera (HRC) was turned off after it was found in an abnormal state. At present the cause is being investigated.
All other aspects of Chandra are performing nominally and work is underway to resume ACIS science observations by early next week.
— Chandra CDO (@chandraCDO) February 16, 2022
The current disturbance is not the first time the X-ray Observatory has encountered a problem. In August 2020, a different anomaly caused the camera to stop working. Earlier, the mission faced a glitch due to the failure of the gyroscope. Telescope started working normally After a week on that occasion.
NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory was originally designed to serve only five years, but has been operating for more than two decades.
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