Effects of the space environment on the HST Wide Field Planetary Camera-I

John W. MacKenty; Sylvia M. Baggett; John Biretta; Michael Hinds; Christine E. Ritchie; Lee D. Feinberg; John T. Trauger

doi:10.1117/12.210921

2 June 1995 Effects of the space environment on the HST Wide Field Planetary Camera-I

John W. MacKenty, Sylvia M. Baggett, John Biretta, Michael Hinds, Christine E. Ritchie, Lee D. Feinberg, John T. Trauger

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 2478, Space Telescopes and Instruments; (1995) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.210921
Event: SPIE's 1995 Symposium on OE/Aerospace Sensing and Dual Use Photonics, 1995, Orlando, FL, United States

Abstract

The wide field planetary camera was launched onboard the Hubble Space Telescope in April 1990 and returned to earth during the HST first servicing mission in December 1993. We report on the ongoing examination of the returned hardware. In particular, a significant decline in performance at UV wavelengths in the exterior optics has been found and studied. This appears to be the result of polymerization of molecular contamination on the external optics by UV light reflected off the Earth's atmosphere. Some conlusions from a partial disassembly of the instrument and an examination of its filter elements are presented. We also discuss the effects of radiation on the CCD detectors during their stay in orbit. Radiation damage increased the numbers of hot pixels over time but had no other discernible effects on the performance of the CCDs.

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John W. MacKenty, Sylvia M. Baggett, John Biretta, Michael Hinds, Christine E. Ritchie, Lee D. Feinberg, and John T. Trauger "Effects of the space environment on the HST Wide Field Planetary Camera-I", Proc. SPIE 2478, Space Telescopes and Instruments, (2 June 1995); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.210921

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