Space, the James Webb super telescope warms up the engines

It will be the largest and most powerful telescope ever launched into space, the ‘James Webb’ which is preparing to leave on its mission with launch scheduled for next December. Webb – which began its first steps in 2007 – will follow in the footsteps of the ‘old’ Hubble Space Telescope sent into orbit by NASA and ESA in 1990 and still operational. Webb will be the next major scientific observatory in space, “designed to answer the unresolved questions about the Universe and to make groundbreaking discoveries in all fields of astronomy,” the European Space Agency points out. The James Webb telescope will be launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from the European spaceport in French Guiana and, in addition to launch services, ESA contributes to the mission with two of the four scientific instruments and provides personnel to support its operations. The Webb mission is the result of an international partnership between NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). What did the universe look like in the beginning? When did the first stars and galaxies form? What can we learn about mysterious elements like dark matter and dark energy? Is the Earth unique? When James Webb begins his work 1.5 million away from us, he will try to answer these historic questions as well. He will try to understand if we are alone in the Universe, his precious golden mirror AND to make Webb able to see in the greatest detail objects that emit only a dim light, he has been equipped with the largest mirror ever. launched into space. “This mirror has a diameter of 6.6 meters, and is so large that it is made up of 18 smaller sections that fit together according to a honeycomb design” recalls the European Space Agency which dedicated to the new super space telescope also a section for children on Esa Kids. The main mirror of the Webb telescope is coated with gold because this material reflects infrared rays very well. The launch of ‘James Webb’ will be followed live from the Kourou space center, Webb’s launch base, and from the headquarters of Webb missions at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. Following the launch will also be the European Estec center, the ESA technical hub and test center in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, the headquarters of the Canadian Space Agency in Saint-Hubert, Quebec, Canada. Many events that ESA, NASA and CSA are preparing for the launch of the new James Webb space telescope. And already tomorrow NASA and its partners will hold a briefing at 15.00 Cest to start making this extraordinary space machine for science known.