astronomy

Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope

Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope rather than just read about it. In short: The Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope (HUT) was a space telescope designed to make spectroscopic observations in the far-ultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum. It was flown into orbit on the Space Shuttle and operated from the Shuttle's payload bay on two occasions: in December 1990, as part of Shuttle mission STS-35, and in March 1995, as part of mission STS-67.

Key takeaways

Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope (HUT) was a space telescope designed to make spectroscopic observations in the far-ultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum. It was flown into orbit on the Space Shuttle and operated from the Shuttle's payload bay on two occasions: in December 1990, as part of Shuttle mission STS-35, and in March 1995, as part of mission STS-67. HUT was designed and built by a team based at Johns Hopkins University, led by Arthur Davidsen. The telescope consisted of a 90 cm main mirror used to focus ultraviolet light onto a spectrograph situated at the prime focus. This instrument had a spectroscopic range of 82.5 to 185 nms, and a spectral resolution of about 0.3 nm. It weighed 789 kilograms (1736 pounds). HUT was used to observe a wide range of astrophysical sources, including supernova remnants, active galactic nuclei, cataclysmic variable stars, as well as various planets in the Solar System. During the 1990 flight, HUT was used to make 106 observations of 77 astronomical targets. During the 1995 flight, 385 observations were made of 265 targets. HUT was co-mounted with WUPPE, Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope [UIT], and BBXRT on the Astro-1 mission (1990) and with just WUPPE and UIT on Astro-2 (in 1995). As of January 2023, HUT is now in storage at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. in the United States.

References

External links HUT webpage at Johns Hopkins University

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope

In research: Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Crewed space observatories, Space Shuttle program, Space hardware returned to Earth intact, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope in simple terms?

Why does Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope.