Iconic Hubble Telescope Could Be Dead in 3 Years

Since its launch in 1990, Hubble has transformed our understanding of the cosmos. The space telescope revealed a universe teeming with galaxies, stars, and planets instead of what we once saw as empty patches of the skies. Today, the telescope’s aging hardware is being dragged down toward Earth, and Hubble may be nearing its end sooner than anticipated.

A team of scientists has estimated that the Hubble Space Telescope could reenter Earth’s atmosphere and meet its fiery demise in 2033. That said, there’s also a 1 in 10 chance that the iconic observatory could come to an end as early as 2029, leaving us with just three more years of mind-bending views and data from the observatory.

One note from the STScI town hall at #AAS247 today: the median reentry date for Hubble, based on current modeling, is 2033; a <10% chance of reentry by 2029.

— Jeff Foust (@jeff_foust) January 7, 2026

The new data was presented at the American Astronomical Society meeting, which was held this week in Phoenix, Arizona, according to SpaceNews reporter Jeff Foust. Although NASA currently has no plans of boosting Hubble to a more stable orbit, there is still hope in the form of a privately funded alternative to the telescope.

End of an era

NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope on April 24, 1990, on board the Space Shuttle Discovery. It once operated at an altitude as high as 360 miles (579 kilometers) in low Earth orbit, but the telescope has slowly descended over the years due to atmospheric drag. Hubble is currently at around 326 miles (525 kilometers) above Earth’s surface, according to NASA.

NASA has boosted the telescope multiple times over the years to keep it from burning up in Earth’s atmosphere. In 2022, NASA and SpaceX announced a feasibility study to raise Hubble to its initial altitude of 373 miles (600 kilometers), allowing it to remain operational for a few more years. As of now, however, NASA hasn’t announced any plans to follow through with raising Hubble’s orbit.

The scientists behind the new estimates combined Hubble’s orbital data with atmospheric drag forces. The drag forces vary depending on solar activity, with the Sun driving changes in the density of Earth’s upper atmosphere.

“The solar flux levels are currently longer in duration and more elevated than previously anticipated, resulting in an earlier reentry forecast for the Hubble Space Telescope if no reboost mission is conducted,” according to the Hubble reentry tracker.

Due to increased solar flux levels, scientists estimate Hubble’s reentry will occur within five to six years. In the best case scenario, the telescope still has 15 more years to go before reentering through the atmosphere in 2040. A worst-case scenario, however, predicts Hubble’s reentry will take place in 2029.

As the telescope’s altitude decreases, atmospheric density increases, speeding up Hubble’s imminent decay. When Hubble reaches an altitude of 248 miles (400 kilometers), it will likely have a year or less remaining before reentering the atmosphere, according to the tracker.

Hall of fame

Before Hubble launched, astronomers didn’t know exactly how big or old the universe really was. Using its 94.5-inch-wide (2.5-meter) mirror, the telescope precisely measured the distance to stars and galaxies, allowing scientists to determine the expansion rate of the universe.

The telescope produced revolutionary images like the Hubble Deep Field in 1995, which captured 342 long exposures of a tiny patch of the cosmos in the constellation Ursa Major. The image revealed roughly 3,000 distant galaxies at varying stages of their evolution, allowing astronomers to look back in time.

The Hubble Deep Field covers a piece of sky about 1/13th the diameter of the full Moon.
Credit: NASA, Robert Williams, and the Hubble Deep Field Team (STScI)

Since its launch, Hubble has made roughly 1.7 million observations, including awe-inspiring images like the Pillars of Creation in the Eagle Nebula, data that aided in the discovery of dark energy, and evidence that confirmed the existence of black holes.

A modern alternative

Over the past few decades, major space telescopes have been funded by national agencies or through international collaborations. As the space industry continues to grow, however, there may be newer alternatives to this age-old model.

This week, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt announced that he is funding a major space telescope and three ground-based observatories. The space telescope, named Lazuli, would be a modern alternative to Hubble, Ars Technica reported.

The investment comes from Schmidt Sciences, founded by Schmidt and his wife, Wendy. Although the amount that the couple is investing hasn’t been disclosed, it would go into building the Schmidt Observatory System. Lazuli, if it were to come to fruition, would become the first privately funded space telescope in history.

The telescope would boast a 94-inch-wide (2.4-meter) mirror and circle Earth in an elliptical orbit that’s much farther than Hubble’s original location. The Schmidts are aiming to launch Lazuli as early as late 2028.

“We sit on decades of technological developments since Hubble,” Arpita Roy, lead of the Astrophysics & Space Institute at Schmidt Sciences, is quoted in Ars Technica as saying. “Lazuli is a very modern take on Hubble, with a larger mirror, swifter response, and different instruments.”