James Webb Space Telescope

James Webb Space Telescope

When NASA's $8 billion James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) lifts off aboard a European Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana in 2018, it will be the culmination of a 22-year effort by scientists and engineers in 17 nations.

James Web Telescope

James Webb Space Telescope

If all goes well, the wait will be well worth it. The largest astronomical observatory ever sent into space, JWST will use its 23-foot diameter mirror to revolutionize our understanding of the Universe.

Optimized for observing in the infrared, the telescope will pursue four principle scientific objectives: to study the formation of stars and planetary systems; to understand planetary systems and the origin of life; to observe the formation and evolution of galaxies; and to search for the light of stars and galaxies created soon after the Big Bang.

The James Webb Space Telescope is so large that no current launch vehicle could launch it with its mirror fully deployed. The mirror is composed of a series of 18 hexagonal segments that will be unfolded after launch. With a diameter of over 23 feet, it dwarfs the Hubble Space Telescopeís mirror, which is only 7.9 feet across.

James Web Telescope Mirrors

James Webb Space Telescope Mirrors

Unlike the Hubble, which operated in low Earth orbit, JWST will be placed in a solar orbit 930,000 miles from Earth at Lagrange Point 2. Placing it in this location, where the gravitational forces of the Earth and sun balance each other out, means that JWST will stay in the same position relative to both bodies. This makes it easier to calibrate instruments and to shield spacecraft from the heat and light of the sun and infrared radiation from Earth.

With its larger mirror and prime location, the James Webb telescope will be able to provide far better results than the Hubble and Spitzer telescopes it is designed to succeed. The powerful infrared observatory should be better able to observe dimmer objects and to penetrate dust and gas that obscure observations of distant objects.

This NASA mission has contributions from scientists in 17 nations. In addition to providing the Ariane 5 launch vehicle, the European Space Agency is supplying the Near InfraRed Spectrograph and other instruments. The Canadian Space Agency is contributing the telescope's Fine Guidance Sensor. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor. The mission is being managed by the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.

NASA began planning the observatory, originally called the Next-Generation Space Telescope, in 1996 as a successor to the Hubble. It is also viewed as a replacement for the Spitzer Space Telescope, which was launched in 2003 and observes objects in the infrared spectrum.

The James Webb Space Telescope has gone significantly over budget and fallen far behind schedule. It was originally supposed to cost $1.6 billion and launch in 2011. However, construction and launch costs are now estimated at just under $8 billion, with another $800 million required for its initial five-year operating costs. NASA's goal is to operate JWST for 10 years.

The telescope is named after James Webb, who served as NASA Administrator from 1961 to 1968. During Webb's tenure, NASA flew the Mercury and Gemini missions and developed the Saturn V rocket and Apollo spacecraft to land men on the moon.

James Webb Space Telescope website

 

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