NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, the world’s most powerful space telescope, was successfully launched at 7:20am EST (16:20pm UAE time) Saturday on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, South America.
After several delays caused by technical hitches, the telescope is now on its way to 1.5 million kilometres from Earth. It has been a project that has been nearly three decades in the making and costed billions of dollars.
A joint effort with ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency, the Webb observatory is NASA’s revolutionary flagship mission to seek the light from the first galaxies in the early universe and to explore our own solar system, as well as planets orbiting other stars, called exoplanets.
The telescope’s revolutionary technology will explore every phase of cosmic history – from within our solar system to the most distant observable galaxies in the early universe, to everything in between. Webb will reveal new and unexpected discoveries and help humanity understand the origins of the universe and our place in it.
Webb will take one month to fly to its intended orbital location in space, slowly unfolding as it goes. Sunshield deployments will begin a few days after launch, and each step can be controlled expertly from the ground, giving Webb’s launch full control to circumnavigate any unforeseen issues with deployment.
Once the observatory has cooled down and stabilised at its frigid operating temperature, several months of alignments to its optics and calibrations of its scientific instruments will occur. Scientific operations are expected to commence approximately six months after launch.
Named after a former NASA director, it is expected to beam back new clues that will help scientists understand more about the origins of the Universe and Earth-like planets beyond our solar system. It follows in the footsteps of the legendary Hubble telescope.
Speaking on social media, Webb project co-founder John Mather described the telescope’s unprecedented sensitivity, adding: “#JWST can see the heat signature of a bumblebee at the distance of the Moon.”
The telescope is unequalled in size and complexity. Its mirror measures 6.5 metres in diameter – three times the size of the Hubble’s mirror – and is made of 18 hexagonal sections. It is so large that it had to be folded to fit into the rocket.
“The James Webb Space Telescope represents the ambition that NASA and our partners maintain to propel us forward into the future,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “The promise of Webb is not what we know we will discover; it’s what we don’t yet understand or can’t yet fathom about our universe. I can’t wait to see what it uncovers!”
Ground teams began receiving telemetry data from Webb about five minutes after launch. The Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket performed as expected, separating from the observatory 27 minutes into the flight. The observatory was released at an altitude of approximately 1,400 kilometers.
Approximately 30 minutes after launch, Webb unfolded its solar array, and mission managers confirmed that the solar array was providing power to the observatory. After solar array deployment, mission operators will establish a communications link with the observatory via the Malindi ground station in Kenya, and ground control at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore will send the first commands to the spacecraft.
Engineers and ground controllers were expected to conduct the first of three mid-course correction burns about 12 hours and 30 minutes after launch, firing Webb’s thrusters to maneuver the spacecraft on an optimal trajectory toward its destination.
“I want to congratulate the team on this incredible achievement – Webb’s launch marks a significant moment not only for NASA, but for thousands of people worldwide who dedicated their time and talent to this mission over the years,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
“Webb’s scientific promise is now closer than it ever has been. We are poised on the edge of a truly exciting time of discovery, of things we’ve never before seen or imagined.”
