UA camera goes out of focus after Hubble installation

''We are going to lose some lifetime. There's no question about that,'' said Ed Weiler, NASA's chief Hubble scientist.

Scientists hope to be able to work around the problem with the Near-Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer, or NICMOS, and still collect all or most of the desired data on black holes and far-off stars and galaxies, Weiler said.

NICMOS has three highly sensitive infrared detectors stored next to a 225-pound block of frozen nitrogen to keep them operating at minus-355 degrees. One of the cameras is far out of focus, Weiler said. The two others are working well.

Scientists believe the ice expanded more than predicted, bumping camera No. 3 out of focus.

In addition, the expanding ice pushed a warm piece of metal against the ice container, causing the nitrogen to dissipate into gas faster than expected, Weiler said. If the trouble persists, the lifetime of NICMOS could be cut in half, to 21/4 years.

As a result, scientists are scrambling to push up the star-gazing schedule for NICMOS.

NICMOS, about the size of a telephone booth, was designed and built by University of Arizona scientists. It represents one-fourth of the entire Hubble science program.

The UA team and its industrial partners, Ball Aerospace and Rockwell International, spent 13 years designing, building and testing NICMOS.

NASA launched Hubble in 1990 with a flawed primary mirror that left the telescope nearsighted. Spacewalking astronauts installed corrective lenses in 1993.

NICMOS and other science equipment were installed in February during a second service visit to the $2 billion Hubble.