ABSTRACT
In 1978, the Perkin-Elmer Corporation won the NASA contract to manufacture the mirror for the Hubble Space Telescope. The success of the Hubble Space Telescope rested on Perkin-Elmer’s ability to create a one-of-a-kind mirror with maximum smoothness and precise curvature-it was a technological challenge for the team of engineers entrusted with the Hubble project. To ensure the success of the project, Perkin-Elmer hired renowned technical experts and optical engineers as consultants to assist the Hubble team. However, even though the Hubble team faced many problems during the mirror production process, it resisted seeking help from the experts. For example, when one of the consultants, Roderic Scott, would come by, team members said to each other, “Hey, Rod is out there. Don’t let him in. Turn up the radio” (Capers & Lipton, 1993, p. 51). As a result of not seeking help, the engineers failed to resolve serious problems that emerged from the production of the mirror, which in turn led to the installation of a seriously flawed mirror into the telescope.
