BBC
Posted: Tue, Nov 23, 2021 – 8:16 am | Last Updated: Tuesday, November 23, 2021 – 8:16 AM
The James Webb Telescope is set to be released on December 18, and it is difficult to describe the excitement and anticipation of its discoveries.
The ‘Super Telescope’ is designed to help scientists see distant parts of the universe and the past beyond what exists now.
It is believed that the James Webb Telescope could detect the light of the first stars to shine in the universe 13.5 billion years ago.
Says the doctor. Amber Nicole Stron, an astronomer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, is also the project’s chief scientist: “The most amazing thing about this huge, ambitious and daring telescope is that there are questions we never thought to ask.”
“The idea that we’ve going to learn things about the universe will completely amaze us – this is the most exciting possibility of this telescope.”
But how does the telescope work, and when can we see the first galaxies in the universe?
The largest astronomical mirror
James Webb will use the largest astronomical mirror ever sent into orbit with a diameter of 6.5 meters. It’s so big, it takes two weeks to open up and spread into space.
The telescope is a joint venture between US, European and Canadian aerospace companies and is valued at $ 10 billion. It will be launched from French Guiana on a European Ariane-5 missile.
Approximately 30 minutes after separation from the web missile, it will take less than 344 steps to complete the setup required for its mission.
Webb walks in space for 30 days to reach his chosen observation point, 1.5 million kilometers from Earth.
When will it start working?
Says the doctor. You will see that six months ago the telescope was not fully functional and after that we can see the first pictures it takes.
“Once the telescope is launched into space, its more complex structure will begin to function. Then it will have to cool down, it will take a few more months, then the glasses will be put in the right place, and then the equipment will be rotated. On, one by one.”
“So, before we start getting pictures, it’s going to be the summer of 2022 in the Northern Hemisphere.”
James Webb in the footsteps of Hubble
The James Webb Telescope is designed to see a part of the universe through another super telescope “Hubble” that we can not see, which changed the way we see the universe.
During his three decades of work, Hubble provided us with some of the most important images of the universe, the “Hubble Ultra Deep Field” of cosmic dust and vapors known as “creative pillars” and images of about ten thousand galaxies.
Although Hubble is expected to continue its work for another ten or twenty years, the web is considered its advanced successor.
The web sees the universe primarily through infrared, picking up light invisible to the human eye, and Hubble’s ability to see in infrared.
Web glass is also larger than Hubble glass. If this is massive, light-collecting glass then the web can see the past better than the Hubble.
Hubble’s orbit is also close to Earth, while the Web is 1.5 million kilometers away – four times the distance between Earth and the Moon.
Says the doctor. Antonella Nota of the European Space Agency: “The Web will add to the remarkable 31 years that Hubble has been in orbit.”
Although the Hubble is a relatively small telescope with a main mirror 2.4 meters in diameter, the Big Bang was able to take pictures of the visible universe a few hundred million years later.
“Because its sensitivity is 100 times greater than Hubble’s, we can see how the first galaxies in the universe formed, and the web will go even further.”
What does the Webb telescope look like?
According to NASA, large wavelengths can help the web capture images of a phase close to the beginning of time and search for patterns of the first unseen galaxies.
This telescope can explore the cosmic dust clouds that make up today’s stars and planetary groups.
Says the doctor. You will find that scientists have already planned for the first year work of the web telescope in space and that this work “covers all branches of space science”.
“It covers everything from studying the planets in our solar system to the first galaxies born 13.5 billion years ago – time, space and the universe,” he says.
Looking for life
This will help us to penetrate the particles in the atmosphere of other planets and find out what they are.
Says the doctor. You will see: “I can not say for sure that we will find evidence for life … but I would not exaggerate if I say that this telescope is definitely our next big step on the path to finding habitable planets. The Milky Way.”
Says the doctor. You will find that “it depends on the telescope, especially the expansion of our knowledge of the universe and the strengthening of our relationship with everything around us.”
The astronomer adds: “When we look at the stars, in the night sky, I feel connected to the universe. We are not small creatures that live alone.”
“We humans, in fact, were born from the remains of a star that exploded billions of years ago.”
“We are connected to the universe. In my opinion, it is always important to take a step back and look at life in more detail.”
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