NASA has chosen two Colorado-based companies to spearhead the development of a groundbreaking space telescope, designed to search for signs of life on other planets. This ambitious project, dubbed the Habitable Worlds Observatory, aims to answer one of humanity's most profound questions: Are we alone in the universe?
The telescope, still in the conceptual phase, is expected to be fully developed after the launch of the Nancy Grace Roman telescope next year. With a $105 million budget allocated for the study, seven companies, including Denver's Astroscale U.S. and Westminster's BAE Systems Space and Missions Systems (formerly Ball Aerospace), have been tasked with researching cutting-edge technologies for NASA's future flagship program.
Astroscale U.S. is focusing on making the new space telescope repairable while in orbit around Earth. Tayler Overschmidt, a spokesperson, highlights the challenges: 'We will be studying the exciting technology innovations that allow highly autonomous and precise robotic on-orbit servicing, and the interfaces and technology needed to empower it.'
The Habitable Worlds Observatory will be stationed approximately 900,000 miles above Earth, beyond the moon's orbit, which presents unique communication challenges. This distance will result in a 5-second, one-way communication delay, making real-time control of repair robots impossible. Additionally, the telescope requires an ultra-stable and precise optical system, capable of not moving more than the width of an atom while collecting data.
BAE Systems and Space Mission Systems, with their expertise in precision engineering, are well-equipped to handle these challenges. They designed and built the mirrors and actuators for the James Webb Space Telescope, achieving remarkable alignment. Lee Feinberg, Webb Optical Telescope Element Manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, emphasizes the feat: 'Aligning the primary mirror segments as though they are a single large mirror means each mirror is aligned to 1/10,000th the thickness of a human hair.'
The success of Ball Aerospace in achieving such precision was evident in the stunning images beamed back to Earth in 2022. Erin Wolf, the program manager at that time, expressed her awe: 'In that room, there was a lot of us who have spent decades on this program, and there was an audible gasp when the images came up.'
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman is thrilled with the progress, stating, 'The Habitable Worlds Observatory is exactly the kind of bold, forward-leaning science that only NASA can undertake. Humanity is waiting for the breakthroughs this mission is capable of achieving and the questions it could help us answer about life in the universe.'
Other companies involved in the project include Northrop Grumman, L3Harris Technologies, and Lockheed Martin, collectively employing over 15,000 people in Colorado. The state's space industry directly employs 55,000 people, and with indirect support from 2,000 companies, it indirectly supports 184,000. NASA contracts have generated $5 billion in economic activity, supported over 21,000 jobs, and contributed over $190 million in state tax revenue, according to the University of Colorado Boulder.
