NASA issued a Request for Information on October 29, 2026, asking commercial space companies for proposals to boost the Hubble Space Telescope to a higher orbit, service its systems, or guide the veteran observatory through a controlled atmospheric reentry before it falls uncontrolled in the early 2030s.
NASA Opens New Review for Commercial Hubble Servicing
The space agency is inviting private industry to evaluate options for rescuing the 36-year-old telescope. Companies have until 3:00 p.m. EST on Monday, November 30, to submit responses to the solicitation issued by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The agency stresses that the notice is exploratory and does not commit funds to procuring a rescue flight.
Unlike past visits, any modern rescue mission faces a strict deadline. Orbital dynamicists calculate that without intervention, the telescope will plunge back into the atmosphere in the 2033 to 2034 timeframe. To prevent an uncontrolled fall, NASA requires any chosen mission to take place by 2032 and leave the observatory completely undamaged.
Three Proposed Mission Options Outlined in the Request for Information
- Orbit Boost: Capture Hubble in low Earth orbit and lift it to an altitude of at least 373 miles (600 kilometers).
- Servicing Upgrade: Fly a servicing mission to improve current performance, increase resilience, and extend the expected on-orbit lifetime.
- Controlled Disposal: Grapple the observatory and guide it safely into a controlled atmospheric reentry.
Contractors responding to the notice would be responsible for providing the launch vehicle, the servicing spacecraft, flight operations, and any necessary crew. Goddard Space Flight Center would share technical data on the observatory and coordinate rendezvous and capture operations.
Decaying Altitudes and the Clock on Solar Activity
Launched in April 1990, Hubble operates without any onboard propulsion system to counter the relentless drag of Earth’s atmosphere. The observatory last saw its orbit raised in 2002, when Space Shuttle Columbia visited during a servicing mission. The final shuttle flight in May 2009, designated STS-125, did not perform a reboost. Since the shuttle fleet retired two years later, the telescope has steadily lost altitude, drifting from roughly 362 miles (583 km) down to its current orbit around 292 miles (470 km) above Earth.
Atmospheric drag is not constant. Increased solar activity can accelerate atmospheric swelling and drag, shortening predicted timelines. Lifetime analyses performed in July 2026 predict a 10 percent chance that Hubble will reenter Earth’s atmosphere by September 2032, with that probability jumping to 50 percent by December 2033. Raising the observatory to the 373-mile threshold specified in the RFI would likely keep it aloft for at least another quarter-century.
Shifting Tides in NASA Policy and Commercial Capabilities
The new solicitation marks a stark pivot for space agency leadership. Before becoming NASA Administrator, Jared Isaacman had proposed funding a private mission with SpaceX’s help to boost the telescope’s orbit, though those earlier plans were treated as conceptual. In a post on X, Isaacman noted that while there is a point of no return for orbital altitudes, exploring options remains worthwhile. There was a far lower-cost solution on the table a few years ago that NASA SMD and STScI endorsed, but that was then,
Isaacman wrote on X, adding that the effort is still warranted because Hubble deserves it.
Hubble still has important science ahead of it, and we should be looking at every reasonable opportunity to keep it delivering for as long as possible.
Jared Isaacman, NASA Administrator
Agency officials point out that commercial space capabilities have advanced dramatically since those earlier proposals were sidelined. Nicky Fox, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, noted that commercial firms have rapidly evolved new capabilities for in-space satellite capture and servicing. That evolution brings potential precedents. Last year, NASA awarded Katalyst Space Technologies $30 million and nine months to build and fly a rescue craft to the Swift observatory. Although ground teams ultimately halted that approach after power and reaction control glitches, the test demonstrated that private sector rendezvous technology is maturing rapidly.
High Scientific Demand While Awaiting the Habitable Worlds Observatory
Despite the operational presence of the James Webb Space Telescope and the Nancy Roman Space Telescope, the demand for Hubble remains exceptionally high, with NASA reporting a 7:1 oversubscription rate among astronomers. Agency documents emphasize that extending the scientific life of the veteran asset preserves its unique capabilities until its projected successor, the Habitable Worlds Observatory, becomes operational in the 2040s.
Whether commercial proposals can meet the technical hurdles and whether NASA will ultimately commit funding to procure a rescue flight is uncertain as industry responses accumulate ahead of the November 30 deadline.
Keep reading