For decades now, NASA scientists have anticipated the launch of the space-based observatory, James Webb Space Telescope. The Hubble successor offers a deeper look into the universe and examines its multibillion-year-old story.
NASA anxious about James Webb Space Telescope's launch
As specified in a USA Today report, the telescope worth $10 billion is a product of a two-and-a-half decade of design and development. It is designed to have "the ability to see billions of years into the past." Despite decades of preparation, there are still 344 probable "points of failure," which could cause disaster to the Webb telescope.
However, not even being at the ultimate multi-mile orbital distance from Earth, the space telescope has already seen its equal share of challenges, postponements resulting from hardware hiccups such as loose screws, work delays because of its absolute complexity, the COVID-19 crisis, and general cost overruns resulting in multiple federal investigations.
Mike Menzel, NASA's lead systems engineer for Webb, admitted that they have apprehensions about the launch because hundreds of parts of the telescope have to work in sequence perfectly to unfold it.
"Unfolding Webb is hands-down the most complicated spacecraft activity we've ever done," Menzel said. "Then again, nothing about Webb is easy. We've never done any of this before."
Engineers and technicians assemble the James Webb Space Telescope November 2, 2016 at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Webb to Begin a 10-Year Mission on Christmas Eve
Nonetheless, the results promised by its 18 gold-plated hexagonal tiles to help in the delivery could be astounding in space and drive a burst of public excitement that was not seen since the famous "Hubble Deep Field" that caught thousands of galaxies in one image.
According to Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator who flew on a mission on the space shuttle, he is nearly as nervous about Webb's launch as he was, for his launch more than three-and-a-half decades ago.
If schedules push through, Webb will begin its 10-year mission on December 24. A European Arian 5 rocket is scheduled for the launch of its 13,000-pound telescope from French Guiana, located north of Brazil at 7:20 am.
What to Look Forward to
The 21-food-gold-coated mirror of the Webb telescope is described as "the star of the show," although NASA's Lockheed Martin-built Near-Infrared Camera, or NIRCam, is what will allow scientists to see through cosmic debris and dust clouds with the use of the infrared range.
In general, the telescope is hyped as being approximately 100 times more powerful compared to the Hubble observatory.
John Mather, astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, said this telescope is very powerful that if "you were a bumblebee" that hovers 240,000 miles away, which is the distance between the Earth and the Moon, "We would be able to see you."
Nevertheless, what particularly do researchers want with quite a powerful telescope unfettered by the volatile atmosphere and light pollution remains a question.
Growing Stars Seen with Infrared
He added they want to know how to get there from the Big Bang. Furthermore, he acknowledged that there are ideas and predictions but "we don't honestly know."
From the Big Bang to the galaxies' formation to the solar system and life itself, the astrophysicist explained, the 13.8-billion-year-long story of the universe is nowhere near being told.
Additionally, the infrared imager of Webb means scientists can look deeper not just farther than ever in the past, although deep into clouds of gas and dust that ultimately give birth to stars, CNET reported via the MSN News.
The dust's dark area obscures their view of the earliest times when the stars are growing. However, they can be seen with infrared.
Essentially, infrared light will go around the dust grains rather than it, bouncing off, explained Mather adding, it is one of their goals to see how stars grow with their young planets.
'Amazing' Discovery Journey
In general, around 10,000 people have worked to make the James Webb telescope possible. Some began early on and have since moved onto the fields or careers. Others, on the other hand, have remained with the program's entirety.
According to Project Scientist Klaus Pontoppidan, they're about to go on this "amazing journey of discovery" and really mean discovery since Webb has this broad power to disclose the unexpected.
He also noted that the discoveries of Hubble created totally new fields of study. He also said, they think the James Webb space telescope will not be different.
Perhaps, he elaborated, Webb, will reveal too, new questions for future generations of scientists to answer, some of whom may not yet even be born.
Related information about this recent space news is shown on Destiny's YouTube video below:
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