The Hubble is a hard act to follow - James Webb Space Telescope

[Rick]

Since it was launched in 1990, the telescope has become one of the most important instruments in the history of astronomy, making critical discoveries that have vastly enriched our understanding of the cosmos.

John Mather is only too aware of this legacy. He is senior project scientist on Hubble's designated successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6254991.stm

[Rick]

After a rather difficult week, some good news for NASA: its engineers have just finished making the mirror that will be the eye of its next space observatory, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). All that remains is for it to be ground and polished.

The telescope will be used, as Hubble was and still is, to examine the farthest reaches of the universe. But its increased sensitivity, due to its larger mirror, means it will be able to see the first galaxies that formed after the big bang.

More: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/02/09/telescope_mirror/

Yet more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6340703.stm

JWST: http://www.jwst.nasa.gov/

[Rick]

The US space agency Nasa has unveiled a model of a space telescope that scientists say will be able to see to the farthest reaches of the Universe.

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is intended to replace the ageing Hubble telescope.

It will be larger than its predecessor, sit farther from Earth and have a giant mirror to enable it to see more.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6645179.stm
And: http://www.jwst.nasa.gov/

[mickw]

Europe shipped one of its big contributions to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on Tuesday.

The Mid Infra-Red Instrument (Miri) was flown out of London Heathrow on a British Airways jet, bound for Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Center.

JWST will be the successor to Hubble, and aims to track down the very first stars to shine in the Universe.

Miri, built by a pan-European consortium led from the UK, will play a central role in that endeavour.

More:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18253444

[Rick]

Two Cameras Offer View of Webb Telescope in Clean Room

Members of the public can track the progress of the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope inside a NASA clean room, where the recently delivered Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) will be integrated into the science instrument payload. Two cameras show the giant clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Online screen shots from the two clean-room cameras, affectionally dubbed "Webb-cams," are updated every minute.

Developed by a consortium of 10 European institutions and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and delivered by the European Space Agency, MIRI is the first Webb telescope instrument to be completed.

The clean room is generally occupied Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. PDT (8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EDT).

The Webb-cams can be seen online at: http://jwst.nasa.gov/webcam.html

More: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2012-174

[Rick]

NASA's Webb Space Telescope Receives First Mirror Installation

NASA has successfully installed the first of 18 flight mirrors onto the James Webb Space Telescope, beginning a critical piece of the observatory's construction.

In the clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland this week, the engineering team used a robot arm to lift and lower the hexagonal-shaped segment that measures just over 4.2 feet (1.3 meters) across and weighs approximately 88 pounds (40 kilograms). After being pieced together, the 18 primary mirror segments will work together as one large 21.3-foot (6.5-meter) mirror. The full installation is expected to be complete early next year.

"The James Webb Space Telescope will be the premier astronomical observatory of the next decade," said John Grunsfeld, astronaut and associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "This first-mirror installation milestone symbolizes all the new and specialized technology that was developed to enable the observatory to study the first stars and galaxies, examine the formation stellar systems and planetary formation, provide answers to the evolution of our own solar system, and make the next big steps in the search for life beyond Earth on exoplanets."

More from NASA

[Rick]

Nasa delays James Webb space telescope launch after 'sudden' incident

The incident took place as technicians were preparing to attach Webb to the launch vehicle adaptor, which would then be used to fix the telescope to the upper stage of the rocket. According to Nasa, "a sudden, unplanned release of a clamp band" took place. The clamp band fixes the spacecraft to the launch adaptor and then releases in orbit, allowing the spacecraft to separate from the rocket. This unplanned release caused a vibration to travel through the telescope.

More: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/nov/25/nasa-delays-james-webb-space-telescope-launch-after-sudden-incident

[Rick]

It's primed and full of fuel, the James Webb Space Telescope is ready to be packed up prior to launch

Engineers have finished pumping the James Webb Space Telescope with fuel, and are now preparing to carefully place the folded instrument inside the top of a rocket, expected to blast off later this month.

"Propellant tanks were filled separately with 79.5 [liters] of dinitrogen tetroxide oxidiser and 159 [liters of] hydrazine," the European Space Agency confirmed on Monday. "Oxidiser improves the burn efficiency of the hydrazine fuel." The fuelling process took ten days and finished on 3 December.

More: https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/07/jwst_fueled/

[Rick]

Nasa launches $10bn James Webb space telescope

Successor to the Hubble telescope takes off on board rocket from ESA's launch base in French Guiana

The world's largest and most powerful infrared telescope has been launched into space on a mission to examine the first stars and galaxies and scour the universe for signs of life.

Scientists from Nasa, who worked with colleagues from the European and Canadian space agencies, believe the approximately $10bn James Webb space telescope – a successor to Hubble – will be the foremost space-science observatory of the next decade.

More: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/dec/25/nasa-launches-james-webb-space-telescope

[Rick]

James Webb Space Telescope lifts off on historic mission

The $10bn James Webb telescope has left Earth on its mission to show the first stars to light up the Universe.

The observatory was lifted skyward by an Ariane rocket from the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana.

Its flight to orbit lasted just under half an hour, with a signal confirming a successful outcome picked up by a ground antenna at Malindi in Kenya.

Webb, named after one of the architects of the Apollo Moon landings, is the successor to the Hubble telescope.

More: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-59782057

[Mac]

Live Telemetry data from the James Webb.

https://webb.nasa.gov/content/webbLaunch/whereIsWebb.html

[Hugh]

Thanks Mac

Good weblink for JW mission status.

Hugh

https://webb.nasa.gov/content/webbLaunch/whereIsWebb.html

[Rick]

...and here is JWST featuring in an APOD: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap211231.html

[ApophisAstros]

I suppose we have to take their word for it , as the rgb background was taken at a different time and added after. Might as well be a satelite.
Roger

[Rick]

The RGB adds colour, but the star positions would be visible on the same plate as the satellite trail, so you could work out whether it conincides with the trail you'd expect to see from the JWST if you wanted. Somehow, I don't think APOD would publish it if they weren't certain it shows what they say it does.