Hubble’s Hands-on Overhaul: “NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope is getting a midlife makeover.

Shuttle Columbia’s crew are ready to set sail on a fourth service call to the Earth circling observatory since it was placed in orbit in April 1990. It’s tool time for teams of spacewalkers trained to carry out a $172 million modernization job on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). This latest renovation effort includes: Installing a more powerful picture-taking camera; outfitting the telescope with new solar arrays; plugging in a fresh power control unit; and attaching experimental cooling gear to rejuvenate HST’s infrared vision.” space.com [via Yahoo!]