NASA’S giant telescope that can see into the deepest depths of space has finally blasted off.
After decades of planning and months of delays, the James Webb telescope was successfully launched on Christmas Day.
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As well as revealing the universe’s biggest secrets, the colossal mirror may be able to “sniff” out signs of alien life, too.
So now that it’s launched, where exactly is it on its journey?
What stage is the James Webb telescope at?
In the first two and a half days, the telescope was in its early deployment phase.
Given James Webb’s massive size, the gold-plated mirrors that do the most important work are actually formed of 18 hexagonal parts that cleverly unpack and click together like a perfect puzzle.
But before all that can happen, the sunshield needs to be assembled.
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This started from day three.
According to NASA, it marks the start of a “major phase” and when it begins to “bloom like a flower”.
There are five layers, which help protect the sensitive optic kit from the sun.
This phase won’t be finished until day nine.
You can get live updates of exactly what stage the telescope is at by visiting NASA’s website.
NASA is also posting regular updates on Twitter.
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Where is the James Webb telescope?
James Webb is still moving through space, at eye-watering speed.
According to NASA’s tracker site on Wednesday, it was well over 340,000 miles away from Earth.
But it’s still got a way to go yet.
As of December 29, NASA said James Webb’s journey was only 37% complete.
To learn more about the telescope, click here.
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Terrifying moment astronauts on the ISS scramble to evacuate as space debris approaches
In other news, NASA has slammed Russia after a missile it fired into one of its own satellites forced the space station to perform an emergency swerve.
Scientists have figured out how fast a type of dinosaur could run – and it would have given Usain Bolt a run for his money.
And Google has confirmed that some of its smartphones are unable to call emergency services due to a software bug.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
