NASA reaches out to commercial space industry for help saving legendary Hubble Space Telescope

Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Safety Net Look Up Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Mashable @Home In My Bag Versus Trending Now Say More Creator Playbook Mashable Selects Getting Technical with Mashable All Series The mission itself wouldn't launch until 2032, but planning must begin soon if Hubble is to be saved. Sad news for space aficionados: the famous Hubble Space Telescope, responsible for some of the most jaw-dropping images of our solar system taken more than three decades since its launch into low-Earth orbit in 1990, is on a slow path towards a fiery fate. At its present rate of altitude loss, NASA's most famous telescope is expected to re-enter Earth's atmosphere sometime in 2033 or 2034, at which point it will come crashing down like a comet, according to Space.com, possibly endangering human life on its descent It doesn't have to be that way, though. If NASA had more room in its budget, it could repeat its 2002 Space Shuttle mission STS-109 and give the aging telescope a nudge into a higher orbit, extending its lifespan. In desperation, NASA has put out a Request for Information (RFI) to the fast-growing commercial space sector, hoping for aid to either boost Hubble's altitude and extend its lifespan or else guide its descent to a safe crash site, such as the middle of the ocean.