Islanders relive the adventure of the Final Hubble Space Telescope Mission with NASA robotics engineer Dr. Ed Cheung,a native son of Aruba
by Rosalie Klein
The Hubble as seen from thespace shuttle.
Dr. Ed Cheung
Dr. Ed Cheung, born and raised on Aruba, is an electrical engineer specializing in robotics and has been a part of NASA and then the Hubble Space Telescope Project, since getting his doctorate from Yale University. On May 11, NASA sent Space Shuttle Atlantis and seven astronauts to the HST for a final mission to upgrade equipment and make repairs, extending its capabilities and usefulness until approximately 2015.
designing and building the Wide Field Camera 3
Ed was an integral part of this mission in his capacity as Principal Engineer of the HST Service Project. NASA STS-125 installed specialized equipment that was the result of years of development, and the team was involved in months of preparation for the launch. The Occidental Grand Aruba Resort was proud to host a presentation by Dr. Cheung on Thursday evening, August 6, where he took an audience of nearly 500 island residents and visitors on a journey though the process and to space, reliving the adventure with behind the scenes footage and photos, as well as his lively commentary.
Explaining the meaning of the different NASA stickers
Dr. Cheung began the evening by distributing NASA stickers and Hubble posters, for which his audience eagerly lined up. He gave a brief history of the various past Hubble repair missions and his involvement since 1997, then treated the audience to “Working with Ed Cheung,” for the months preceding the launch on May 11, and during the repair mission. He explained how the new equipment is tested on the ground by subjecting it to extremes of vibrations and temperature, a process they have nicknamed “shake and bake.”
Showing the size of 1 of the 3 shuttle rocket nozzles
Atlantis out of its protective cover, a remarkable night shot
Ed’s home movies and photos took his audience where only a very privileged few have ever been, climbing the heights of a Kennedy Space Center launch pad, venturing inside the Atlantis and the vertical assembly facility, and experiencing the control rooms at Johnson Space Center. He made each location and experience come vividly alive as they watched the space shuttle be assembled for launch and transferred to its pad. As Ed brought forward interesting points, the audience came to understand the remarkable science that enables NASA to send astronauts into space, and the magnitude of such an undertaking. As a video of the approach by the shuttle to the HST unfolded on the screen, Ed indicated to the audience the ASCS/NCS Relay Unit Breaker Assembly or ARUBA box, developed by he and his team, and which he was allowed to name. This was installed in 2002 as emergency repair for a failure in the NICMOS cooling system. Ed’s inventing a name that was an acronym for his homeland elicited a burst of emotional applause from his fellow countrymen.
The audience literally peeked over the shoulders of Astronauts John Grunsfeld and Mike Massimo as they affected revolutionary repairs in space, something never attempted before, and for which specialized equipment was devised by Ed and his team. Ed easily switched back and forth between English and Papiamento for his commentary, so all those attending could fully understand the wondrous achievements of this last mission to Hubble, welcoming questions from a fascinated audience.
Dr. Cheng leaves his signature on a print of the first images from WFC3
Dr. Cheung finished his lecture with photos of what NASA employees call a “first light” ceremony. This is when the science department presents the first viable images from the newly installed equipment to the NASA staff members, and all those that participated in the mission sign the first prints of these images. Ed explained that his audience in Aruba enjoyed the privilege of the first public viewing of these shots of deep space from “his baby,” the WFC III. A final question and answer period revealed that this was the last mission to the Hubble as it will eventually be replaced by a new telescope, the James Webb, to which Ed will likely move on after the HST is decommissioned. At present, he is still very busy with his team bringing all the newly installed systems online and fully functioning. He spent quite some time after his talk autographing posters and stickers and happily posing with admiring fans. His wife Agnes, also from Aruba, proved an able assistant throughout his presentation.
Dr. Cheung gave his free lecture in the memory of his father, Kong Ming Cheung, with the purpose of inspiring island youngsters to pursue the best education they can possibly attain, just as his father instilled in him this lofty goal. He expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the Occidental Grand Resort for donating their ballroom which was filled to capacity for his enlightening presentation. “This was a wonderful audience,” he commented afterwards, “they were completely engaged in the topic, absorbed the science easily, and had excellent questions and observations, I am truly amazed and gratified at the overwhelming response.”
Giving autographs to happy fans
Dolph Hoevertsz was Ed's Geography teacher at Colegio Arubano
A special autographed poster for his sound and lightman for the lecture
Dr. Cheung expressed willingness to present future lectures during return trips to the island, considering the enthusiastic response to Thursday’s presentation, as he hopes to continue encouraging interest in the accomplishments of the Hubble team and the NASA space program. His photos and day by day commentary can be seen by visiting his website, www.edcheung.com, and stunning images produced by the HST as well as official NASA videos about the last mission and a full history of Hubble is on their website, www.nasa.gov/hubble.
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