Hubble Space Telescope

This is the Calibration Delivery System (CDS) for the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS), which was installed on the Hubble Space Telescope in May of 2009. I collected data for thermal vacuum testing of CDS during my early days at CASA. I am in the white shirt.

This is a photo of the inside of CDS during disassembly three years after the Hubble servicing mission. Many parts of it will be useful for future experiments.

I was asked to build a model of Hubble to commemorate COS, designed by CU scientists and one of two final instruments to be installed in the telescope. I created this 1:6 scale model, measuring 9 feet long with its aperture door open. I am in the green shirt.

This is the 1:6 scale Hubble model towards the end of its construction while I was working on the final detailing.

This is the model after installation in CASA’s ARL lobby.

While working on the larger Hubble model, I noticed some metal pieces happened to be the proper size ratio between the two main sections of Hubble: the telescope and instrument bays. I used them to machine this Hubble paperweight, which I gave to COS Principal Investigator Jim Green, my boss. He sent it to astronaut John Grunsfeld, who carried it aboard the space shuttle Atlantis during the final Hubble servicing mission to commemorate COS. The paperweight made 197 orbits of the earth during the mission, traveling 5.3 million miles before being returned to our lab, where it is now on display near the larger model.

This is the Hubble paperweight during construction. I used spring-hinges from a pair of cheap reading glasses to make the high gain antennas deployable.

Here is my 1:91 scale Hubble model while some epoxy is setting.

Here it is on display after returning to earth.