Was it worth spending all that money to make the hubble telescope?

Answer 1

Absolutely - most people only tend to view the science aspect of HST, and not the commercial application advancements that have been made in it's long history. Some of those you're probably familiar with, but don't realize where the development of the technology came from:

Lithium Ion Batteries - Li Ion battery technology was further funded by NASA's Goddard Space Center for the HST/ISS Pistol Grip Tool, used to service the Hubble and construct the International Space Station. Though the design is based on a standard cordless drill (Black & Decker was initially approached for a design, but declined) the power pack is a series of Li Ion cells. The PGT was one key program I was responsible for, and it was initially used in 1997 on the HST 2nd Servicing Mission. Though they still have the same problems we had back then (they tend to overheat occasionally in certain situations) they're still the rechargeable power cell of choice for the masses, and it's only been in the past few years that BD/DeWalt and other companies have started using them in their tools.

Solid State Drives / Flash Drives - SSD's and Flash Drives are a direct result of a Hubble Telescope replacement unit called the Solid State Recorder. Replacing 2 mechanical reel-reel tape drives on HST Servicing Missions 2 and 3A, SSR technology has literally changed the way digital data is stored, eliminating the need for mechanical drives.

Medical Scanning Technology - Much of the enhanced medical scanning technology you're familiar with (CRT's, MRI's, etc.) are directly related to Hubble Telescope imaging technology advancements.

Charge-Coupled Devices (CCD's) - A direct result of Hubble Telescope imaging technology, CCD's are the electronic imaging core of every modern digital camera in use today, digital imaging devices used in medical and industrial applications, as well as satellite imaging.

Composite Materials - There are many carbon and metal composite materials that were originally developed for NASA programs. All spacecraft are manufactured with lightweight composites, and the various materials have improved over the years. Everything from cars to planes have benefited from the technology.

Infrared Technology - Everything from infrared thermometers to IR cameras owes its development to technology developed for astronomical research.

There are some pics on my Supervisor bio page of the PGT and other HST systems, and the link below will direct you to the NASA Spinoff/Innovative Partnerships Program site.