The NASA-designed James Webb Space Telescope focuses primarily on infrared astronomy. The Webb telescope was jointly developed and developed by NASA, ESA and CSA. After its launch on December 25, it certainly proved that all the hard work and time the scientists put into launching the telescope finally showed light.
The James Webb telescope had in its time further deployed its mirror, which was a whopping 21 feet long and completely covered in gold. As we wait for NASA to release the first image from the space telescope, which will arrive this summer, here are some key milestones cracked by the James Webb.
Small changes, big progress!
After completing 2 more mirror alignment steps, #NASAWebb‘s optical performance will be able to meet or exceed its scientific goals. That’s a good view! #UnfoldTheUniverse
Curious about this image? Subject ️ pic.twitter.com/OQXb20rrL7
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) March 16, 2022
starlight
About to capture the first sight, the James Webb telescope attempted to look at a star that was significantly bright. This star was placed in the Ursa Major constellation and was predicted to be 258 light-years ahead. In its attempt to capture the star, it photographed a starlight along with a selfie depicting the huge, gilded mirrors. Researchers who retrospectively reviewed the image had suspected that the James Webb telescope was functioning properly and that there were no obstructions even after 45 days of its service and all of its 18 segments were well intact.
Image photobombed by galaxies
In March, the James Webb telescope managed to capture a star named 2MASS J17554042+6551277. NASA stated they were demonstrating the same thing to prove that the expensive telescope that cost nearly $10 billion to capture a starlight with near-perfect focus. NASA also wanted to check if there were any defects with the telescope as its successor, the Hubble had shown some problems while capturing it. The image captured was of a star and it was photobombed by many ancient galaxies. This was all thanks to the incredible optics and NIRCam aboard the Webb.
ESA’s Gaia catches Webb at L2
The James Webb Space Telescope was captured by ESA’s Gaia Observatory on February 18. Both are placed in orbits near the Lagrange point 2 (or L2). The distance for this is 1.5 million km from the Earth in the direction away from the Sun. The Webb reached L2 in January 2022, while the ESA’s Gaia Observatory had arrived way back in 2014. The distance between the Webb and the Gaia was about a kilometer.
In June, NASA is also expected to share the first and most important photos taken by Webb. These images were created to demonstrate the operation of the Webb’s instruments as it is put into use. It is important to note that the Webb telescope was jointly developed by NASA, the ESA and the CSA.