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James Webb Space Telescope launches 18th December

The successor to the Hubble Space Telescope – the James Webb Space Telescope – will finally head to the heavens later this year, barring any further delays of course.

NASA announced the latest targeted launch date of 18th December for the telescope on Wednesday in conjunction with Arianespace following the completion of a rigorous testing regimen.

The James Webb Telescope is said to be the largest and most complex space telescope ever constructed. The telescope will orbit Earth from 1.5 million kilometres away and it will search for the first galaxies formed after the Big Bang.

The telescope will complement and extend the capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope which recently had a few technical issues.

“Webb is an exemplary mission that signifies the epitome of perseverance,” program director for the James Webb Telescope program at NASA, Gregory Robinson said.

“I am inspired by our dedicated team and our global partnerships that have made this incredible endeavor possible. Together, we’ve overcome technical obstacles along the way as well as challenges during the coronavirus pandemic. I also am grateful for the steadfast support of Congress. Now that we have an observatory and a rocket ready for launch, I am looking forward to the big day and the amazing science to come,” Robinson added.

The telescope will head to orbit via an Ariane 5 rocket which will launch from Kourou in French Guiana. The components for that rocket were recently shipped from Europe to South America.

The James Webb Space Telescope is an international project led by NASA together with the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.

Given how much the Hubble Space Telescope has helped humanity understand and peer into the cosmos, we’re incredibly excited to see what the James Webb Space Telescope will discover and more importantly, what more we can learn about the universe.

[Image – NASA GSFC/CIL/Adriana Manrique Gutierrez]

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