NEW YORK — To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the launch of NASA's Hubble Space Telescope (opens in new tab), the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum is bringing together a group of astronauts and astrophysicists to talk about the iconic observatory in the first-ever "Virtual Astronomy Live" webcast today (April 24). The free, 90-minute webcast begins at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT), and you can watch it live here (opens in new tab).
Three retired NASA astronauts and space shuttle veterans will participate in the discussion, including former NASA administrator Charles Bolden (opens in new tab), astronaut-turned-artist Nicole Stott (opens in new tab) and Hubble repairman Mike Massimino (opens in new tab), who flew on two Hubble servicing missions in 2002 and 2009.
Also joining the group will be three astrophysicists and science communicators, including Frank Summers (opens in new tab), a visualization scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). Summer Ash (opens in new tab), a rocket scientist, radio astronomer and freelance science writer will moderate the discussion, and John "Das" Galloway, creator of the Kerbal Space Academy (opens in new tab) game platform, will host the event.
Related: The best Hubble Space Telescope images of all time! (opens in new tab)
During the webcast, these scientists and astronauts will look back at some of the biggest moments of Hubble's 30 years in orbit and discuss NASA's next flagship space observatory, the James Webb Space Telescope (opens in new tab).
The astronauts will also offer their perspectives on "the parallels between isolation in space and the conditions many are experiencing during the current pandemic," the Intrepid museum said in a statement.
At some point during the event, the speakers will be answering questions live through an interactive Q&A. Viewers can submit questions via Twitch (opens in new tab).
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Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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