Sens. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate panel that controls the NASA purse strings, and Sam Brownback (R-Kans.), the chairman of the Senate panel with legislative oversight of NASA, introduced the Hubble resolution Thursday afternoon.

Mikulski is a long time supporter of the Hubble Space Telescope, which is operated by two facilities in Maryland. Brownback recently joined the campaign to save Hubble, telling Space News in February interview that he would like to see NASA send another shuttle mission to the telescope even if doing so would require NASA to cut back some of its International Space Station plans.

Mikulksi and Brownbacks resolution follows on the heels of a similar resolution introduced in the House of Representatives last month by Rep. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), whose congressional district is home to Boulder-based Ball Aerospace, a builder of Hubble instruments.

About 40 co-sponsors have signed on to Udalls bill.

NASA Administrator Sean OKeefe strongly opposes sending a shuttle to Hubble in the wake of the Columbia accident but has said that he is open to other approaches, including robotic missions, to extend the life of the telescope.

A NASA call for ideas on ways other than using the shuttle to service and extend the life of Hubble had received 29 responses by the March 22 deadline, according to NASA spokesman Donald Savage.