Hubble telescope returns to space

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., March 9 (UPI) -- Fresh from a $172 million overhaul, the Hubble Space Telescope floated back into space early Saturday with more power and a sharper camera to peer even farther back into the past.

"We have a beautiful view of Mr. Hubble, the telescope, over the Earth's horizon, ready to go and make new discoveries," astronaut John Grunsfeld radioed to ground-control teams from aboard the shuttle Columbia.

"From the crew of STS-109, we bid Hubble well on its new journey, with its new tools, to explore the universe," said Grunsfeld, as the telescope drifted away from the shuttle. "Good luck, Mr. Hubble."

Grunsfeld and his crewmates spent the past five days on spacewalks to upgrade the observatory's power systems, install a new camera and revive a dormant infrared sensor.

"It's a far better machine than when it was first launched," said Hubble program manager Preston Burch.

Columbia's mission was the fourth servicing call to Hubble since the telescope was put into orbit in 1990.

The shuttle crew is scheduled to return to the Kennedy Space Center early Tuesday.