The powerful James Webb Space Telescope is getting closer to its first scientific observation. The European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA have confirmed that the telescope is fully aligned and in focus. Now Webb can take "crisp, well-focused images" with its instruments.
This significant milestone was celebrated with a set of images that show Webb's instruments working accordingly. To test if they are ready to start delivering sharp images, scientists pointed the telescope toward a small galaxy of the Milky Way called the Large Magellanic Cloud, which contains hundreds of thousands of stars.
The pictures returned show well-focused stars in the field of view of each instrument. That demonstrates the light bounces off the telescope's mirrors into each instrument and that they are effectively capturing photos with the light that they receive.
The picture quality transmitted to all instruments is "diffraction-limited," which means that the level of detail visible is as good as it can get for the size of the telescope. Even so, the set of images has surpassed scientists' expectations. Since the mirrors are now fully aligned, only small modifications will be brought to Webb's main mirror segments.
And with this milestone, the giant observatory will move into its next forward into the instrument commissioning phase, which is the final step before the telescope begins its official operations. It's a process that should take around two months, which means Webb will be ready to make its first scientific observation in June.
Each one of its four instruments comes with a complex array of sensors, filters, and lenses that will play a significant role in returning high-quality photos. Their features will be configured and tested in various combinations throughout the instrument commissioning phase to ensure that they work properly. If everything goes accordingly, Webb will be able to peer into the past of the universe and observe some of the early galaxies formed after the Big Bang.
The pictures returned show well-focused stars in the field of view of each instrument. That demonstrates the light bounces off the telescope's mirrors into each instrument and that they are effectively capturing photos with the light that they receive.
The picture quality transmitted to all instruments is "diffraction-limited," which means that the level of detail visible is as good as it can get for the size of the telescope. Even so, the set of images has surpassed scientists' expectations. Since the mirrors are now fully aligned, only small modifications will be brought to Webb's main mirror segments.
And with this milestone, the giant observatory will move into its next forward into the instrument commissioning phase, which is the final step before the telescope begins its official operations. It's a process that should take around two months, which means Webb will be ready to make its first scientific observation in June.
Each one of its four instruments comes with a complex array of sensors, filters, and lenses that will play a significant role in returning high-quality photos. Their features will be configured and tested in various combinations throughout the instrument commissioning phase to ensure that they work properly. If everything goes accordingly, Webb will be able to peer into the past of the universe and observe some of the early galaxies formed after the Big Bang.
“It’s full of stars!” ?
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) April 28, 2022
This mosaic represents a sparkling turning point as we #UnfoldTheUniverse. #NASAWebb’s mirrors are now fully aligned! Next is instrument calibration, the final phase before Webb is ready for science: https://t.co/PcAxajyMfI
What do we see here? ?? pic.twitter.com/qzdZRbsgRF