James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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andmar74
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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NASA scientists say images from the Webb telescope nearly brought them to tears
Deep field images of the universe, exoplanet atmospheres, and more to be unveiled.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/06 ... telescope/
Six months have passed since a European rocket lofted the James Webb Space Telescope into orbit. Since that time, the ultra-complex telescope has successfully unfolded its expansive sunshield, commissioned its science instruments, and reached an observation point more than 1 million km from Earth.

This white-knuckle period in space followed nearly two decades of effort to design, build, and test the telescope on Earth prior to its launch on Christmas Day, 2021. But now, all of that effort is in the rearview mirror, and Webb's massive 6.5-meter diameter mirror is gazing outward and collecting scientific data and images. It is the largest and most powerful telescope that humans have ever put into space, and it's already revealing new insights about our cosmos.

"The images are being taken right now," said Thomas Zurbuchen, who leads NASA's scientific programs, during a news conference on Wednesday. "There is already some amazing science in the can, and some others are yet to be taken as we go forward. We are in the middle of getting the history-making data down."

NASA said it plans to release several images beginning at 10:30 am ET (14:30 UTC) on July 12, the result of Webb's "first light" observations. On Wednesday, space agency officials said the images and other data would include the deepest-field image of the universe ever taken—looking further into the cosmos than humans ever have before—as well as the spectrum of an atmosphere around an exoplanet. By looking in the infrared, Webb will be able to identify the fingerprints of small molecules, such as carbon dioxide and ozone, that will offer meaningful clues about the habitability of worlds around other stars.

NASA's deputy administrator, Pam Melroy, said she was blown away by the images Webb has produced so far. "What I have seen moved me, as a scientist, as an engineer, and as a human being," she said.

The telescope is healthy. Thanks to a precise launch by the European Space Agency's Ariane 5 rocket, Webb should have enough maneuvering propellant on board for 20 years of life. And although there have already been five micrometeoroid impacts, the telescope was designed to account for these small dings with a lot of margin.

Recounting his first encounter with data from Webb, Zurbuchen said he, too, was in awe of what the telescope had proven capable of. He said he almost cried when looking at the first photos taken by the new instrument.

"It's really hard to not look at the universe in a new light and not just have a moment that is deeply personal," he said. "It's an emotional moment when you see nature suddenly releasing some of its secrets. and I would like you to imagine and look forward to that."

What a tease!

Unfortunately, we will have to wait nearly two full weeks to see the final products from Webb's first observations. NASA said it will not be releasing any images early, even on an embargoed basis. But we've waited 20 years for Webb to come online and offer a truly worthy successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. I suppose we can wait a little while longer.

If we must.
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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Please limit quotations to ~5 paragraphs, unless the article is taken from a press release or other "free" source, e.g. government website. Thanks.
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andmar74
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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wjfox wrote: Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:54 pm Please limit quotations to ~5 paragraphs, unless the article is taken from a press release or other "free" source, e.g. government website. Thanks.
Ok I will try to remember that.
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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The Webb Telescope to Examine Jupiter and Two of Its Moons
by Kiona Smith
July 1, 2022

Introduction:
(Inverse) SOME OF the James Webb Space Telescope’s first real science won’t be all far-off galaxies and distant stars. In fact, some of the first heavy-hitting science will come from our cosmic backyard.

As part of the Director’s Discretionary Early Release Science Program — an initial round of studies carefully chosen to help scientists test Webb’s capabilities — University of California, Berkeley planetary scientist Imke de Pater and her team will use Webb to study Jupiter.

Our Solar System’s largest planet and its complex menagerie of moons and rings present some fascinating scientific targets for Webb. Along the way, the team will explore the limits of Webb’s abilities and find the best ways to use the telescope to study our own Solar System, which comes with a unique set of challenges for a telescope built to look 13 billion years into the past.

Webb will spend about 33 hours this summer observing Jupiter, its rings, and two of its most interesting moons: icy Ganymede and volcanic hellscape Io.
Read more here: https://www.inverse.com/science/will-j ... e-jupiter
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weatheriscool
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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caltrek wrote: Sat Jul 02, 2022 1:32 pm The Webb Telescope to Examine Jupiter and Two of Its Moons
by Kiona Smith
July 1, 2022

Introduction:
(Inverse) SOME OF the James Webb Space Telescope’s first real science won’t be all far-off galaxies and distant stars. In fact, some of the first heavy-hitting science will come from our cosmic backyard.

As part of the Director’s Discretionary Early Release Science Program — an initial round of studies carefully chosen to help scientists test Webb’s capabilities — University of California, Berkeley planetary scientist Imke de Pater and her team will use Webb to study Jupiter.

Our Solar System’s largest planet and its complex menagerie of moons and rings present some fascinating scientific targets for Webb. Along the way, the team will explore the limits of Webb’s abilities and find the best ways to use the telescope to study our own Solar System, which comes with a unique set of challenges for a telescope built to look 13 billion years into the past.

Webb will spend about 33 hours this summer observing Jupiter, its rings, and two of its most interesting moons: icy Ganymede and volcanic hellscape Io.
Read more here: https://www.inverse.com/science/will-j ... e-jupiter

Sounds like a good idea. Why not aim it at earth to test its abilities to find life and as a test to go down the list?
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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James Webb Space Telescope will watch smashing worlds in high definition
published about 10 hours ago

Researchers are looking forward to a glimpse of colliding worlds in action from NASA's cutting-edge space observatory.

After the James Webb Space Telescope finishes its commissioning period and releases its first operational images on July 12, the observatory will dive into science in earnest. And one of the telescope's first-year investigations will include a close-up view of the strange neighborhood of Beta Pictoris.

The young star, just 63 light years away from us, is surrounded by a dusty disc full of debris left over from its formation. It's a crowded space, hosting "at least two planets [and] a jumble of smaller, rocky bodies," researchers said in a 2021 press release(opens in new tab) about the investigation.

While the research has numerous directions, one key aspect is watching a young planetary system evolving as planetesimals (the predecessors to planets) collide. Because Beta Pictoris is wreathed in dust, researchers will be using Webb's infrared light to peer through the debris and see what is happening in high definition.

Webb will have decades of past work to draw upon, including ground-based observatories and space observations from the Hubble Space Telescope. We know from such studies that Beta Pictoris hosts at least two gigantic planets, both much more massive than Jupiter. Researchers also glimpsed the first known exocomets, or comets beyond our solar system, whirling in the debris cloud.
https://www.space.com/james-webb-space- ... socialflow
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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NASA reveals Webb telescope's first cosmic targets
https://phys.org/news/2022-07-nasa-reve ... osmic.html
An image of the Carina Nebula shot by the Hubble Space Telescope.
NASA said Friday the first cosmic images from the James Webb Space Telescope will include unprecedented views of distant galaxies, bright nebulae, and a faraway giant gas planet.

The US, European and Canadian space agencies are gearing up for a big reveal on July 12 of early observations by the $10 billion observatory, the successor to Hubble that is set to reveal new insights into the origins of the universe.

"I'm looking very much forward to not having to keep these secrets anymore, that will be a great relief," Klaus Pontoppidan, an astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STSI) that oversees Webb, told AFP last week.

An international committee decided the first wave of full-color scientific images would include the Carina Nebula, an enormous cloud of dust and gas 7,600 light years away, as well as the Southern Ring Nebula, which surrounds a dying star 2,000 light years away.
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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NASA releases James Webb telescope 'teaser' picture
https://phys.org/news/2022-07-nasa-jame ... easer.html
A test image from the James Webb Telescope -- among the deepest images of the universe ever taken.
NASA has a provided a tantalizing teaser photo ahead of the highly-anticipated release next week of the first deep-space images from the James Webb Telescope—an instrument so powerful it can peer back into the origins of the universe.

The $10 billion observatory—launched in December last year and now orbiting the Sun a million miles (1.5 million kilometers) away from Earth—can look where no telescope has looked before thanks to its enormous primary mirror and instruments that focus on infrared, allowing it to peer through dust and gas.

The first fully formed pictures are set for release on July 12, but NASA provided an engineering test photo on Wednesday—the result of 72 exposures over 32 hours that shows a set of distant stars and galaxies.

The image has some "rough-around-the-edges" qualities, NASA said in a statement, but is still "among the deepest images of the universe ever taken" and offers a "tantalizing glimpse" at what will be revealed in the coming weeks, months, and years.

"When this image was taken, I was thrilled to clearly see all the detailed structure in these faint galaxies," said Neil Rowlands, program scientist for Webb's Fine Guidance Sensor at Honeywell Aerospace.

Jane Rigby, Webb's operations scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said the "faintest blobs in this image are exactly the types of faint galaxies that Webb will study in its first year of science operations."
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Re: James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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President Biden will share the Webb Telescope's first image today (at 5 PM, Monday July 11th)
The first glimpse of how the James Webb Space Telescope will change the way people see the universe is arriving a little earlier than expected.

President Joe Biden will release one of Webb's first images Monday at the White House at 5 p.m. ET. The preview event, during which NASA Administrator Bill Nelson will also share remarks, will stream live on NASA's website (link here ... https://www.nasa.gov/nasalive ).
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/07/11/worl ... index.html
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