The Hubble Space Telescope whirls around Earth at a speed of 5 miles per second. If cars moved that fast, a coast-to-coast trip across the continental U.S. would take only 10 minutes.
Artist's rendering of the orbit of the Hubble Space Telescope

How do astronomers get to use the telescope?

Each year, astronomers from dozens of countries submit proposals to the Institute. An international panel of scientists judges them on their scientific merit, basing the review on two basic criteria: Does the proposal address the most pressing scientific questions and does it represent the best use of observatory time? Typically, the Institute receives more than 1,000 proposals a year and selects about 300. This translates into about 20,000 individual observations each year.

 

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