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The “James Webb Space Telescope” is the next great thing that is going to take the field of space and science by storm. It is an observatory designed kinda on the steps of Hubble.
It is designed to answer questions we have about the Universe and to make breakthrough discoveries in all fields related to astronomy and cosmology.
Webb will help us see further into our origins. All from the formation of stars and planets, to the birth of the first galaxies in the early Universe. It was Launched on 25th December 2021 from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. Its Launch vehicle was Ariane 5.
The James Webb Space Telescope is a space telescope designed specifically to conduct infrared astronomy. It was developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Webb is the most powerful telescope ever built to date.
It has assorted instruments built in which will give us a clearer view of more stars than the human race has ever seen. It is loaded with high-quality and high-resolution cameras with infrared instruments that will be able to capture crisp images of stars in our local universe. Yes! Even the ones that are obscured by gas and dust clouds.
All space lovers know how NASA's Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes have been instrumental in transforming and opening the door to the infrared universe that was way beyond the realm of red visible light, way beyond our reach.
Webb is a natural evolution of those missions. It's literally perfect as it combines Spitzer's view of the infrared universe with Hubble's sensitivity and resolution. It has the best of both worlds.
Moreover, with all the data that it is going to provide us, scientists can dive deep into three main topics, which are as follows: dark energy, the stellar life cycle and the early universe.
Scientists are anticipating and hoping to use Webb to determine the rate of expansion, because it will be able to image individual stars in such great detail. researchers hope that they are able to more accurately calculate the distance between stars. Such data could help scientists determine how fast the universe is expanding.
The Webb Space Telescope is all set to examine Planetary Leftovers in the Solar System Graveyard. After reaching its final destination, the telescope has slowly been deploying its many instruments and mirrors, cooling down and preparing for its mission to better understand space.
While we have access to early images that have now come through, it will still be a while until we can expect to see anything concrete.
Not only will it be used to deepen our understanding of the Milky Way, but it will also provide us with a look at faraway exoplanets and celestial objects, and also hunt for evidence of dark matter.
What stage is the James Webb Space Telescope at now?
The James Webb Space Telescope is now in L2 Orbit, which is its final destination. It is about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth. It took roughly a month to complete this journey. The best part is that you can track its progress with NASA’s ‘Where is Webb’ feature.
Who is James Webb?
You must be thinking, who has the honor of having such a historic telescope named after them? this title goes to James Edwin Webb. He was the second administrator of NASA, best known for heading up Apollo, the first space program to send humans to the Moon.
He was also instrumental in the two crewed space programs that followed on from Apollo: Mercury and Gemini. While Webb did eventually die in 1992, aged 85, he left a massive legacy behind, deserving of a telescope named after him.
It is fitting that Hubble’s successor be named in honor of James Webb. Thanks to his efforts, we got our first glimpses at the dramatic landscape of outer space. He took our nation on its first voyages of exploration, turning our imagination into reality.
How big is the James Webb Space Telescope?
The James Webb Space Telescope is the largest space observatory ever built. Its gigantic sun shield base measures a massive 22m by 12m. It’s roughly the same size as a tennis court.
It is nearly twice as big as Hubble which is only 13m long and it weighs about 6,500kg which is almost half in weight as the Hubble.
How far can the James Webb Space Telescope see?
Using its infra-red telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope observatory will examine objects over 13.6 billion light-years away.
Because of the time, it takes light to travel across the Universe, this means that it will effectively be looking at objects 13.6 billion years ago, an estimated 100 to 250 million years after the Big Bang.
This is going to be the furthest back in time ever observed by humanity. Everyone has their fingers crossed and is waiting to see how it will change our world and our future forever.
Written by: Varima Tandon
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