James Webb Space Telescope-Everything Explained About It! 

In today's article, you'll understand everything about the James Webb Space Telescope. The Hubble Space Telescope was one of the best telescopes built by scientists. This telescope gave us many new and unique information and images of our universe; this all made scientists more curious about space and its wonders. But by this time, this telescope was unable to reach the range of humans as it was a very old model. That's why NASA built another, 100 times more powerful than Hubble Space Telescope, named it James Webb Space Telescope, and launched it in December 2021. This telescope was able to tell us about the Big Bang Theory and the first-generated galaxies and stars. This telescope's discoveries completely changed our perception of space. Let's discover its birth and importance.

Contents:

1. Hubble Space Telescope: History and End
2. James Webb Space Telescope: Birth and Instruments
3. Unique Qualities of JWST 
4. Top Discoveries by James Webb Space Telescope
5. Summary and FAQ

Hubble Space Telescope: History and End

33 years ago, in 1990, scientists launched a telescope with the help of five astronauts and NASA's Space Shuttle and successfully placed it in a position 600 kilometers above the Earth's orbit. This was one of the most successful and revolutionary missions of the Space Age, completed with the contribution of top space agencies. This telescope completely changed the perception of scientists about the universe. As we heard, terms like black holes, dark energy, the big bang, and more were found by the Hubble Space Telescope. In a couple of decades, this telescope did its work very well and gave us lots of new information about space and objects in space. It solved many puzzles in space and gave answers to a lot of scientists' questions.

 The best thing is that this was a repairable telescope, as it was placed just 600 kilometers above Earth's orbit. It's many parts were repaired and changed by astronauts during several space missions. Through several services, it became the first telescope to work for a longer period of time than any other telescope or satellite. But with time, as it is getting older and unable to complete the requirements of modern scientists, Scientists have predicted that by 2030 it will get pulled by Earth's gravity and will sink into the ocean. That's why scientists built another telescope 100 times more powerful than Hubble and named it the James Webb Space Telescope.

James Webb Space Telescope: Birth and Instruments

JWST is an infrared telescope on which scientists worked in 1996. This amazing telescope was built with the mutual contributions of America's NASA, ESA (European Space Agency), and CSA (Canadian Space Agency). It's first launch date was in 2007, and the total budget of the whole mission was predicted to be around $500 million. But several major changes were made to its initial design in 2005, and its launch date was postponed many times. It's development was completed in 2016 with a $10 billion budget. Between 2016 and 2019, scientists practiced its performance in any possible aspect and situation in space. Then, the launch date was fixed for March 2021. But in the last moments, a major problem occurred, and its launch date was postponed to December 2021. Finally, it launched on December 25, 2021. This most advanced, complex, and powerful telescope was built with the continuous contribution of 14 countries and approximately 1200 scientists.

Also Read: Voyager Space Missions of NASA Explained!

 

The major purpose of the James Webb Telescope was not to replace the Hubble Telescope but to complement it. Both are different space telescopes that study the universe in different electromagnetic spectra. It consists of four major instruments: a near-infrared camera, a near-infrared spectrograph, a mid-infrared instrument, and a fine guidance sensor. Its mirrors are so sensitive that they can detect the heat of a honeybee from thousands of kilometers away. This was placed at a unique point known as Lagrange Point 2 L2, which is 1.5 kilometers from Earth. Machines need less fuel to work on these Lagrange points. This is not a serviceable telescope like the Hubble Telescope. Which means scientists only had that one chance to make it better before launch.

 

Unique Qualities of the James Webb Space Telescope:

After changing its design again and again, scientists built a fantastic and high-tech telescope with so many unique features. As we know, light also takes some time to travel from one place to another, which means the stars we see at night at a place were actually there many years ago. Yes, but their light takes some time to come to Earth, and we think they are present in that position now. This means if aliens observe our Earth with their telescopes, they will actually see dinosaurs on Earth; it depends on the distance between two planets. So, as JWST is able to see planets and stars billions of miles away from it, Thus, it is possible that it could find a planet where aliens are living in the present or once lived.

 It is able to find planets where humans can settle and say that Second Earth is much better than Earth to live on. It gives us information about the past of the universe and sends images of different stars and objects in space. With its high-power lenses, we are able to study the first-born stars and galaxies after the Big Bang. Scientists are researching their development and end. It's infrared lenses are able to see planets and stars behind dust and clouds. And it is able to detect lower wavelengths as well.

Top Discoveries by James Webb Space Telescope:

From the time it started doing its work, It keeps sending us images of different galaxies, stars, objects, formations, and the birth and destruction of stars. You will get a whole article on its most amazing discoveries. Most of the discoveries listed in Weird Things Found in Space were made by the James Webb Telescope. Here are some names of the top discoveries made by it:

1. Stars born in the Pillars of Creation

2. The First Direct Image of an Exoplanet

3. Wolf-Rayet Star

4. Explained details of an exoplanet's atmosphere.

5. Glimpsing Titan's Clouds

6. Hidden Star Formations as Galaxies Collide

7. Brown Dwarf with Sand Clouds

8. Secrets of the Southern Ring Nebula

9. A supermassive black hole with a mass of a million suns

10. Dying Star's Final Stages

11. And much more...

 

Also Read: Future Missions to Create Base on Mars and it's Moons!

Summary and FAQ

Now you have understood everything about the James Webb Space Telescope, which is operated by NASA, ESA, and CSA together. Most people think it is NASA's telescope only, but it is controlled by their mutual support. This is one of the best things humans have made so far, as it gives us new information and images regularly. You have learned about so many new terms and facts about space. I hope you learned a lot from this article. Here are some questions that come to mind:

 

1. What has JWST discovered?

New galaxies, the dying star's formation, weird objects, and more

2. What is the groundbreaking discovery of JWST?

It regularly shocks scientists with its amazing discoveries.

3. Has JWST discovered any exoplanets?

Yes, so many exoplanets have been discovered by JWST so far.

4. How many galaxies has JWST discovered?

717 galaxies have been discovered by JWST so far.

5. What is the oldest galaxy found?

GLASS-z13 is the oldest galaxy found yet.