Photo: NASA
The word "awesome" has been over-used. It is now jokingly assigned as a term employed by people who can't come up with more specific adjectives (or who surf). But it seems that looking down on Earth, from 350 miles above it, should reclaim the right to the word that means "inspiring awe." An IMAX movie is the closest that many of us will get to seeing this wonderful sight, so it's good to know that the new Hubble 3D movie, which documents the journey of space shuttle STS-125 to repair and upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope in May 2009, is looking truly awesome.
The film, set to be released on March 19, was made by the same crew that produced Space Station 3D in 2002, and the eye-feast Deep Sea 3D.
The movie documents the space shuttle crew's preparation, the rocket launch, and Hubble itself. The crew brought an IMAX camera and eight minutes of film into space, plus took additional non-IMAX footage through helmet cameras and via satellite. Those images are not as detailed as IMAX, but are still mesmerizing.
STS-125 Mission Specialist Michael Massimino came back to his home state of New York this week to appear at a pre-screening of about 15 minutes of footage from the film.
Every time I've had the pleasure of hearing a former astronaut talk, they say that looking down at the Earth from above is one of the single greatest things they've ever experienced, and Massimino was no exception. He said he remembers thinking, "this is what heaven must look like." The only sadness he felt at that moment came from realizing that he couldn't share it with everyone. The film might not be quite as good as taking a space walk, but I could stare at the shots of Earth all day.
Note that the film is not a collection of images produced by the Hubble, although the trailer suggests there will be a little bit of that sprinkled in. But rest assured that the images of the actual telescope are also jaw dropping. The massive instrument responsible for all of that incredible beauty and knowledge is laid bare on the screen. In the grandeur of IMAX and 3D, Hubble looks like a sleeping beast; both colossal and vulnerable as the crew operates on its insides.
Talkative and excited, Massimino opened up with the audience after the film, saying that it made him teary to look at the footage and remember his time in orbit. He answered a question about the infamous bolt incident, where a single bolt holding a door in place refused to come unscrewed, and with time running out, the engineering crew on the ground told Massimino to rip the door off. He succeeded without further incident, and everything worked out all right. Massimino says his helmet camera was running during the incident, but he's not sure if the footage will show up in the film.
The impromptu stunt wasn't the only time Massimino worried about whether or not he and the crew could get everything done, and done right. But despite the ominous music and gritty voice-over in the trailer, Massimino reminded the crowd that "this is a success story."
No kidding. Images from the updated Hubble have already been released, along with data analyses that might identify the most distant galaxies ever seen.
Massimino also returned to New York to deliver the American flag that he and the crew brought with them into space. They are donating it to the 9/11 memorial museum.
