The
last piece of equipment on the manifest is the NICMOS cryocooler.
Astronauts will retrofit an existing but dormant instrument called the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) with a new, experimental cooling system to return it
to active duty.
NICMOS was Hubble’s infrared “eyes” until it lost the coolant necessary to chill
its infrared detectors. Infrared detectors must be kept cold in
order to sense the heat of infrared light. By fitting NICMOS with
the experimental cryogenic system, NASA hopes to re-cool its detectors to –334°F
(–203°C or 70 K) and revive its infrared vision.
Infrared vision allows NICMOS to see through
clouds of interstellar dust. This dust obscures visible and ultraviolet light, but some infrared light can pass through it. With NICMOS
revived, we will once again be able to see through thick hazes
to study the evolution of galaxies, stars, and planets that lie
hidden within.
