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LEGO unveils detailed Hubble Space Telescope model

Created at 3 Aug · 7:26 PM1 source
IN SHORT

LEGO has released a new Icons Hubble Space Telescope model, featuring removable panels to reveal internal instruments and equipment. The model is configured to reflect the telescope's post-2009 servicing.

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Key Numbers

fivetimes Hubble was visited by astronauts
2009year of Hubble's fifth servicing mission
35years of Hubble's anniversary logo on minifigure

Who's Involved

LEGO
company that released the Hubble Space Telescope model
Hubble Space Telescope
subject of the new LEGO Icons model
LEGO unveils detailed Hubble Space Telescope model

↳ Why This Matters

This new LEGO set allows space enthusiasts and builders to recreate a significant scientific instrument, celebrating the legacy and iconic imagery of the Hubble Space Telescope.

Key facts

  • LEGO has launched a new Icons Hubble Space Telescope model.
  • The model includes removable panels revealing internal scientific instruments.
  • It is configured to represent the Hubble telescope after its fifth servicing in 2009.
  • The set comes with a display stand featuring a plaque with facts and three iconic Hubble images.
  • An astronaut minifigure wearing an extravehicular mobility unit is included.

LEGO has introduced a new detailed model of the Hubble Space Telescope as part of its Icons line. The set allows builders to explore the internal components of the iconic observatory, featuring removable panels that reveal scientific instruments and equipment. The model is designed to replicate the Hubble's configuration following its fifth servicing mission in 2009, which included upgrades to its capabilities.

Key internal components represented in the build include the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS), Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS), Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), and Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS). External details such as communications antennas and solar array wings are also present, with the solar panels depicted in their latest installed version. The designers also incorporated subtle details, such as a LEGO steering wheel representing a capture mechanism for future servicing missions and stickers simulating star tracker ports and vents.

The set includes a display stand that features a plaque listing facts about the Hubble and its servicing missions. Three translucent printed parts on the stand showcase some of the telescope's most famous images: the "Pillars of Creation" in the Eagle Nebula, the Whirlpool Galaxy, and the Butterfly Nebula. Additionally, the set comes with an astronaut minifigure equipped with an extravehicular mobility unit, complete with NASA's celebratory logo for the Hubble Space Telescope's first 35 years on its life support system backpack.

Frequently asked questions

It is a detailed construction set that allows users to build a replica of the Hubble Space Telescope, featuring internal components and display options.

The model includes representations of the STIS, COS, ACS, and NICMOS instruments, among other scientific equipment.

The set features printed parts of the "Pillars of Creation," the Whirlpool Galaxy, and the Butterfly Nebula.

Yes, it includes an astronaut minifigure decorated to wear an extravehicular mobility unit and featuring a Hubble 35th anniversary logo.

What Happens Next

01The LEGO Icons Hubble Space Telescope set is available for purchase.

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Cadence

How It Developed

LEGO released a new Icons Hubble Space Telescope model.
The model features removable panels showing internal instruments.
It reflects the telescope's configuration after its 2009 servicing.
The set includes a display stand with a plaque and famous Hubble images.
An astronaut minifigure with a Hubble 35th anniversary logo is included.

Sources

T1
LEGO deploys Hubble Space Telescope as detailed desktop modelvar abtest_2165910 = new ABTest(2165910, 'impression');Ars Technica

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