NASA’S giant space telescope has finally reached its celestial “parking spot” – where it will capture groundbreaking info about deep space.
After decades of planning and months of delays, the James Webb telescope was successfully launched on Christmas Day – and arrived at final orbit on January 24.
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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?
Where is the James Webb space telescope?
Before arriving at its final destination, James Webb was moving through space, at eye-watering speed.
It’s now “parked” roughly a million miles from Earth.
This final position is where the JWST will conduct all of its space science.
It’s at the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point, which is an area where objects can stay largely put.
SPACE AND ASTRONOMY
“This is truly a fantastic achievement. I am especially excited because the scientific lifetime of the mission is likely now longer than originally planned,” said UCL’s professor Richard Ellis, who was the only Europe-based member of the panel that proposed JWST in 1996.
“When one considers the huge impact of Hubble over many years, this augurs well for JWST.
“The astronomical community can’t wait to see the first dramatic images of the early universe, hopefully later this year.”
To learn more about the telescope, click here.
What stage is the James Webb telescope at?
The James Webb Space Telescope launched on December 25.
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 needed to be assembled.
This started from day three.
According to NASA, it marked the start of a “major phase” and when it began to “bloom like a flower”.
There are five layers, which help protect the sensitive optic kit from the sun.
That phase finished at 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.
When will the James Webb telescope return?
The JWST will eventually run out of fuel.
Once the 5- to 10-year mission is complete, the JWST will likely fall out of orbit and become space debris.
The JWST is a significant distance from Earth, and there are no current plans to retrieve or refuel it.
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