They are optical space telescopes. Hubble operates in visible light and near UV. Kepler looks foe exoplanets in a limited area of the sky. Webb, still in preparation, should work in the near IR range.
Tullio

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They are optical space telescopes. Hubble operates in visible light and near UV. Kepler looks foe exoplanets in a limited area of the sky. Webb, still in preparation, should work in the near IR range.
Tullio

I will miss the Hubble...

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Optical telescopes such as the European Southern Observatories telescopes in Chile, 10 meters and next 30 meters disks, have more light gathering power than Hubble. They have also a good resolving power with adaptive optics pioneered by an American woman scientist, whose name I cannot remember (Claire Max?), who uses a laser to obtain an artificial star in the stratosphere. The telescope points to this artificial star and correct itself. for better "seeing".
Tullio

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The Lick Observatory, where Claire Max developed her laser method, has received a 1 million $ donation from Google, according to Berkeley Online News. Claire Max is the interim director of all University of California Observatories.
Tullio

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The Lick Observatory, where Claire Max developed her laser method, has received a 1 million $ donation from Google, according to Berkeley Online News. Claire Max is the interim director of all University of California Observatories.
Tullio

I think the Google company isn't that bad. They funded SpaceX too a while ago. Thx for the update Tullio.

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Texas Has New Big, Bright Webb STTARS

A big, bright James Webb Space Telescope “STTARS” is now deep in the heart of Texas. The Space Telescope Transporter for Air Road and Sea (STTARS) is a giant white shipping container with a very important cargo: a test model of part of the Webb telescope, called the “Pathfinder Backplane.” This new NASA video shows its arrival at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston on Feb. 5, 2015.

The Pathfinder Backplane is a practice section of the James Webb Space Telescope. To ensure the telescope will operate at its frigid destination 1 million miles out in space, it must complete cryogenic tests. The biggest cryogenic test occurs at Chamber A at Johnson, the same vacuum chamber where Apollo spacecraft were tested.

Pics inside link.

http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/texas-has-new-big-bright-webb-sttars/index.html

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Thanx for the update Lynn:) Very controlled, wouldn't want to be in the shoes of those operators..

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In my opinion the only telescopes which must go in space are the X-ray and. gamma-ray telescopes. Optical telescopes with 30 meter disk diameter (even with multiple disks) are being built in Chile at Cerro Paranal by ESO and in Hawaii atop Mauna Kea by an American consortium which includes also Berkeley. With the help of the laser technique pioneered by Claire Max their resolving power with adaptive optics is equal to that of the space telescopes and their light gathering power is much greater.
Tullio

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Every rocket launch to orbit around the earth or beyond is risky business. All components have to withstand some very intense vibration. The fact that the JWST will be located near the L2 lagrange point will make it virtually impossible to repair or upgrade.

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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.

Every rocket launch to orbit around the earth or beyond is risky business. All components have to withstand some very intense vibration. The fact that the JWST will be located near the L2 lagrange point will make it virtually impossible to repair or upgrade.

Oh boy, and all the money that it costs....

Update in the meanwhile:

Texas Has New Big, Bright Webb STTARS

A big, bright James Webb Space Telescope “STTARS” is now deep in the heart of Texas. The Space Telescope Transporter for Air Road and Sea (STTARS) is a giant white shipping container with a very important cargo: a test model of part of the Webb telescope, called the “Pathfinder Backplane.” This new NASA video shows its arrival at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston on Feb. 5, 2015.
The Pathfinder Backplane is a practice section of the James Webb Space Telescope. To ensure the telescope will operate at its frigid destination 1 million miles out in space, it must complete cryogenic tests. The biggest cryogenic test occurs at Chamber A at Johnson, the same vacuum chamber where Apollo spacecraft were tested.

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Update:

Webb Conversations: James Webb Space Telescope Coming Together

This is the third installment in a four-part series of conversations with Paul Geithner Deputy Project Manager - Technical for Webb telescope at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland about different aspects of the Webb.
The James Webb Space Telescope will gaze into the universe in infrared light and look farther back in time than previous telescopes, allowing scientists to look through cosmic dust to see stars forming. Paul discusses how the Webb telescope is coming together.

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Updates:

New "Behind the Webb" Video Reveals "A Perfect Pair"

The newest video in the "Behind the Webb" series called "A Perfect Pair" provides a look at how two major pieces of the James Webb Space Telescope observatory come together. The video series takes viewers behind the scenes to understand more about the Webb telescope.

Webb Conversations: Freezing NASA's Webb Telescope Is a Matter of Survival

The James Webb Space Telescope will gaze into the cosmos in infrared light, which will help unlock many mysteries. Using infrared light, the Webb telescope will be able to look farther back in time than previous telescopes, and will allow scientists to look through dust to see stars forming inside. Paul provides answers to questions about the kind of freezing temperatures the Webb telescope will endure in space.

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UPDATES

An Unexpected Journey: Spacecraft Transit the Panama Canal

The James Webb Space Telescope will also transit the Panama Canal on its way to the Ariane 5 launch site in French Guiana. The telescope, with a mirror that extends two stories high and a sunshield the width of a tennis court, will be too large to fit on many of the airplanes on which NASA transports its spacecraft.

A View from NASA's Webb Bed-Chamber

A photo, taken from the inside of Chamber A, a giant cryogenic vacuum chamber at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, shows the large vehicle resembling a bed frame in the foreground that will move James Webb Space Telescope's Pathfinder backplane inside the chamber. The large rounded object on the right side of the photo is the "bed chamber's" giant door.

NASA Prepares Webb Telescope Pathfinder for Famous Chamber A

Engineers and technicians manually deployed the secondary mirror support structure (SMSS) of the James Webb Space Telescope's Pathfinder backplane test model, outside of a giant space simulation chamber called Chamber A, at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. This historic test chamber was previously used in manned spaceflight missions and is being readied for a cryogenic test of a Webb telescope component.

In the weightless environment of space, the SMSS is deployed by electric motors. On the ground, specially trained operators use a hand crank and a collection of mechanical ground support equipment to overcome the force of gravity.

Ramping Up For Johnson's Chamber A Test

Looking out from inside the enormous mouth of NASA's giant thermal vacuum chamber, called Chamber A, located at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the Pathfinder or test model of the James Webb Space Telescope's backplane is seen sliding in on the rails. Previously used for manned spaceflight missions, this historic chamber is now being readied for a cryogenic test.

Click links to view photographs.

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Interesting piece about the Panama Canal. :~)

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Update:

Building Hubble's Successor: Crucial Pathfinder Test Set Up Inside Chamber A

Inside NASA's giant thermal vacuum chamber, called Chamber A, at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, the James Webb Space Telescope's Pathfinder backplane test model, is being prepared for its cryogenic test. Previously used for manned spaceflight missions, this historic chamber is now filled with engineers and technicians preparing for a crucial test.

Exelis developed and installed the optical test equipment in the chamber.

"The optical test equipment was developed and installed in the chamber by Exelis," said Thomas Scorse, Exelis JWST Program Manager. "The Pathfinder telescope gives us our first opportunity for an end-to-end checkout of our equipment."

"This will be the first time on the program that we will be aligning two primary mirror segments together," said Lee Feinberg, NASA Optical Telescope Element Manager. "In the past, we have always tested one mirror at a time but this time we will use a single test system and align both mirrors to it as though they are a single monolithic mirror."

Click link to view picture.

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Progress report.

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Progress report.

I like the Cleanroom cam. :~)

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Engineers Clean Mirror with Carbon Dioxide Snow

Just like drivers sometimes use snow to clean their car mirrors in winter, two Exelis Inc. engineers are practicing "snow cleaning'" on a test telescope mirror for the James Webb Space Telescope at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. By shooting carbon dioxide snow at the surface, engineers are able to clean large telescope mirrors without scratching them.

Click link to view photograph

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Recent accomplishments

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Update:

Young Innovators Bring Creations to Life in NASA Goddard Spinoff Challenge

Students across the country joined forces to answer these questions and ultimately design a virtual environment for showcasing ideas in the NASA Goddard OPTIMUS PRIME InWorld Spinoff Challenge. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the National Institute of Aerospace in Hampton, Va., hosted the final round of the InWorld Challenge April 30.

Competitors chose one of NASA’s space technologies used in Webb telescope, the planned successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, to recreate as their own spinoff. Teams focused on how the technology could be used in a new way, but on Earth rather than in space. The challenge outline provided examples of existing Webb telescope spinoff creations. Students chose one of these innovations as inspiration for their own spinoff.

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