• Light/Dark

NASA’s James Webb space telescope has been fully assembled

Reader mode
Forerunner

Forerunner

Resetufologist
Banned
Oct 30, 2017
15,052

Reaching a major milestone, engineers have successfully connected the two halves of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope for the first time at Northrop Grumman's facilities in Redondo Beach, California. Once it reaches space, NASA's most powerful and complex space telescope will explore the cosmos using infrared light, from planets and moons within our solar system to the most ancient and distant galaxies.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

right.jpeg






Information about the launch:

jwst.nasa.gov

The Launch - Webb/NASA

The James Webb Space Telescope (sometimes called Webb or JWST) is a large infrared telescope with a 6.5-meter primary mirror. Webb is the premier observatory of the next decade, serving thousands of astronomers worldwide. It studies every phase in the history of our Universe, ranging from the...
jwst.nasa.gov

Launch Date

Webb will launch in 2021.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Launch Vehicle

The James Webb Space Telescope will be launched on an Ariane 5 rocket. The launch vehicle is part of the European contribution to the mission. The Ariane 5 is one of the world's most reliable launch vehicles capable of delivering Webb to its destination in space. The European Space Agency (ESA) has agreed to provide an Ariane 5 launcher and associated launch services to NASA for Webb. The Ariane 5's record for successful consecutive launches is 80 (as of June 28, 2017).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Launch Location

Webb will be launched from Arianespace's ELA-3 launch complex at European Spaceport located near Kourou, French Guiana. It is beneficial for launch sites to be located near the equator - the spin of the Earth can help give an additional push. The surface of the Earth at the equator is moving at 1670 km/hr.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
 
Aurongel

Aurongel

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 28, 2017
7,065
Cannot wait to see what this is capable of compared to the Hubble. The high level analysis provided by Wikipedia really gets my imagination going.
 
Hey Please

Hey Please

Avenger
Oct 31, 2017
22,824
Not America
I remember when this was supposed to be in its orbit before the end of the decade. Well, at the least, one productive thing assembled in the USA is escaping the country and Trump's tyranny should he get re-elected.

I hope the the back of the solar panel says, "See ya suckers" in binary.
 
Zed

Zed

Member
Oct 28, 2017
2,544
Fucking awesome! However, I got a bad feeling something is going to go wrong such as them finding a major error while it is in space and there would be no feasible way to currently fix it.
 
Damaniel

Damaniel

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
6,560
Portland, OR
Launch Vehicle

The James Webb Space Telescope will be launched on an Ariane 5 rocket. The launch vehicle is part of the European contribution to the mission. The Ariane 5 is one of the world's most reliable launch vehicles capable of delivering Webb to its destination in space. The European Space Agency (ESA) has agreed to provide an Ariane 5 launcher and associated launch services to NASA for Webb. The Ariane 5's record for successful consecutive launches is 80 (as of June 28, 2017).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Great job jinxing it, guys. /s
 
What is L2?
  • Index
    • OP
    OP
    Forerunner

    Forerunner

    Resetufologist
    Banned
    Oct 30, 2017
    15,052

    L2 is short-hand for the second Lagrange Point, a wonderful accident of gravity and orbital mechanics, and the perfect place to park the Webb telescope in space. There are five so-called "Lagrange Points" - areas where gravity from the sun and Earth balance the orbital motion of a satellite. Putting a spacecraft at any of these points allows it to stay in a fixed position relative to the Earth and sun with a minimal amount of energy needed for course correction.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...


    464173main_L2_Webb_rework.jpg
     
  • Index
    • anexanhume

    anexanhume

    Member
    Oct 25, 2017
    12,939
    Maryland
    There is no fixing this like the Hubble if something goes wrong due to its final positioning. It's a significant effort and I am very anxious about its deployment.
     
    ibyea

    ibyea

    Member
    Oct 25, 2017
    4,165
    This better work because this came at a big cost that affected other projects.
     
    smurfx

    smurfx

    Member
    Oct 25, 2017
    10,732
    truly scary thing is that if there is any mechanical problem the whole project is screwed because we can't send anybody to fix it this time like we did the hubble telescope. we better make sure it works the first time.
     

    Deleted member 30411

    User-requested account closure
    Banned
    Nov 3, 2017
    1,516
    On a purely engineering level, this thing already beggars belief. Then you add the casual fact that it's going to space. Throw in the fact it's going to be stationed past the moon and damn, if you aren't impressed by that, I doubt you could ever be.

    I have had my fingers crossed for this since I heard about it many years ago and despite being saddened a little by the delays to the launch schedule, I would wait another 10 years if it meant that this thing worked perfectly. Because it has to.
     
    opticalmace

    opticalmace

    Member
    Oct 27, 2017
    4,068
    Launch in 2021 now? brutal. ~_~

    Here's hoping everything works out. Would be a huge setback for IR astronomy if something goes wrong.
     

    Deleted member 48897

    User requested account closure
    Banned
    Oct 22, 2018
    13,623
    LegendofJoe said:
    After the LHC this is probably the most impressive scientific instrument ever built. It's not surprising that it has taken decades for it to come together.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Yep. This makes the hubble look like it was a kid's toy made of felt and cardboard in a way. I'm definitely very glad they've been taking the effort to make sure that it's up to standards.
     

    Deleted member 11637

    Oct 27, 2017
    18,204
    No negativity please, Jimmy Dubs needs all our spirit power for a routine, boring launch and deployment.

    Congratulations to everyone involved!
     
    Reader mode
    You must log in or register to reply here.