The James Webb Space Telescope
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The James Webb Space Telescope
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 Julie  Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18 
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The James Webb Space Telescope is a large space telescope, optimized for infrared wavelengths. It is scheduled for launch later in this decade. Webb will find the first galaxies that formed in the early Universe, connecting the Big Bang to our own Milky Way galaxy. Webb will peer through dusty clouds to see stars forming planetary systems, connecting the Milky Way to our own solar system. Webb's instruments will be designed to work primarily in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum, with some capability in the visible range. Webb will have a large mirror, 6.5 meters (21.3 feet) in diameter and a sunshield the size of a tennis court. Both the mirror and sunshade won't fit onto a rocket fully open, so both will fold up and open once Webb is in outer space. Webb will reside in an orbit about 1.5 million km (1 million miles) from the Earth. The James Webb Space Telescope was named after the NASA Administrator who crafted the Apollo program, and who was a staunch supporter of space science. Set for launch in 2018 http://jwst.nasa.gov/ rOZZ Music Pictures |
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Thomas Send message Joined: 9 Dec 11 Posts: 1499 Credit: 1,345,576 RAC: 0 
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Thanks for the heads-up Julie ! :) A new quest will certainly be full of discoveries and surprises... Long live to JWST (from 2018, of course !). |
Mr. Kevvy    Send message Joined: 15 May 99 Posts: 3805 Credit: 1,114,826,392 RAC: 3,319 
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Nice! Hadn't heard of this before (well, maybe, but I didn't know what it was.) This looks like it will do for infrared what Hubble did for visible. Thanks Julie. :^) 
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Lynn   Send message Joined: 20 Nov 00 Posts: 14162 Credit: 79,603,650 RAC: 123 
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Thanks for the link Julie. I will miss Hubble :( |
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Mr. Kevvy Send message Joined: 15 May 99 Posts: 3805 Credit: 1,114,826,392 RAC: 3,319
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I will miss Hubble :( What?!? No Hubble?!? <<checks Hubble pages>> Possibly you meant Kepler? (But it may be workable still...)
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Lynn Send message Joined: 20 Nov 00 Posts: 14162 Credit: 79,603,650 RAC: 123
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I will miss Hubble :( When will the hubble be decommissioned? Hubble is the only telescope designed to be serviced in space by astronauts. Between 1993 and 2002, four Space Shuttle missions repaired, upgraded, and replaced systems on the telescope; a fifth mission was canceled on safety grounds following the Columbia disaster. However, after spirited public discussion, NASA administrator Mike Griffin approved one final servicing mission, completed in 2009. The telescope is now expected to function until at least 2014, and possibly 2020.[10] Its scientific successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), is currently scheduled to be launched in 2018. |
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Mr. Kevvy Send message Joined: 15 May 99 Posts: 3805 Credit: 1,114,826,392 RAC: 3,319
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Thought it was going to be run until it failed, but considering how amazing it's been even being that old, and how far technology has advanced since it was launched, this one should be a worthy successor.
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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Hertz: James Webb Telescope Still on Schedule for Launch Despite GAO Concerns “JWST remains on plan, on budget, on schedule. It’s making great technical progress toward launch in late 2018,†Paul Hertz, director of NASA’s Astrophysics Division, told scientists attending the American Astronomical Society’s winter meeting Jan. 5-9 at the National Harbor, Md. rOZZ Music Pictures |
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tullio Send message Joined: 9 Apr 04 Posts: 8797 Credit: 2,930,782 RAC: 1 
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They are optical telescopes looking to different parts of the EM spectrum, mostly visible and UV for Hubble, longer wavelength IR for Webb. Kepler is looking at a chosen constellation searching for planets passing in front of stars and diminishing their luminosity. Tullio |
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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Wiggo  Send message Joined: 24 Jan 00 Posts: 36726 Credit: 261,360,520 RAC: 489 
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JWST is the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. I guess Hubble will retire once they've launched the JWST, or maybe before the launch... Technically Hubble was suppose to have been retired in 2010 so it's been running on overtime (still it's doing pretty well in its advanced age). From HubbleSite, http://hubblesite.org/the_telescope/hubble_essentials/quick_facts.php Launch: April 24, 1990 from space shuttle Discovery (STS-31) Cheers. |
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tullio Send message Joined: 9 Apr 04 Posts: 8797 Credit: 2,930,782 RAC: 1
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Hubble was saved by a Shuttle mission after being put in orbit with flawed optics It was upgraded by two more Shuttle missions. If the JWST incurs in some problem no mission can reach it. Kepler has overtaken its deadline but it is still working with different objectives. Tullio |
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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Bob DeWoody  Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10
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That's why they have to do everything within their power to make sure it is capable of completing it's mission before it is launched. It is ironic that Hubble sat around in storage for several years before it got it's ride into space. Plenty of time to check things like optics before it ever left the ground. I think now that they have learned their lesson and assume nothing. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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That's why they have to do everything within their power to make sure it is capable of completing it's mission before it is launched. It is ironic that Hubble sat around in storage for several years before it got it's ride into space. Plenty of time to check things like optics before it ever left the ground. I think now that they have learned their lesson and assume nothing. That's 'gekkenwerk' we call it in Dutch, work for crazy men... rOZZ Music Pictures |
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tullio Send message Joined: 9 Apr 04 Posts: 8797 Credit: 2,930,782 RAC: 1
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The JWST has to deploy its mirrors in space,since it they are launched folded. That is a big risk. Tullio |
Gordon Lowe  Send message Joined: 5 Nov 00 Posts: 12094 Credit: 6,317,865 RAC: 0
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It always amazes me how fragile cargo like this makes it safe and sound into space after a tumultuous rocket launch.  The mind is a weird and mysterious place
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Bob DeWoody Send message Joined: 9 May 10 Posts: 3387 Credit: 4,182,900 RAC: 10
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I'm pretty sure that the Hubble telescope rode into space in the cargo bay of the shuttle. While still a bumpy ride a shuttle launch when everything went right was not as rough as the ride that most satellites endure. Bob DeWoody My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events. |
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Julie Send message Joined: 28 Oct 09 Posts: 34060 Credit: 18,883,157 RAC: 18
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This month, the flight Near-Infrared Camera was installed into the flight Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM) for the James Webb Space Telescope. NIRCam joins the flight Fine Guidance Sensor/ Near Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (FGS/NIRISS) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) which are already integrated into the ISIM. The flight Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) will be installed next. The NIRCam is JWST's primary imager and will be returning beautiful images of the universe. rOZZ Music Pictures |
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