Wouldn’t we all be really interested in knowing more in-depth information on how the first-ever galaxy was formed or how a supernova actually happened or how a star really died? If you are, and you have a never-dying hunger for cosmology and astronomy, then you are up for having a huge fest.
The James Webb Space Telescope or JWST is the next Space telescope that NASA is going to launch in Early 2021 and it said that this is the replacement for our beloved Hubble space telescope. Though Hubble can still function and will continue to provide data for science, still Hubble is limited to near-infrared and visible and near UV spectrum analysis. So JWST is equipped with far superior infrared sensing capability and sensitivity that can provide data on the formation of galaxies, planets, supernovas, and stars. JWST was actually planned for 2007 with a budget estimation of $500 million, soon it faced a lot of hindrances and NASA now plans to send it early next year. A space telescope is much smaller compared to the telescopes placed in the earth, then what makes it so special is that there is no interference of our ever-present atmosphere and it is free from noises, obstacles like satellites and space debris and hence they provide so much more detailed data. The JWST has 18 small hexagonal mirrors combining to make a large 6.5m diameter mirror which is three times larger than the one that is currently placed in Hubble, there is no existing launch vehicle that is big enough to fit a mirror this big, so the mirror is made in smaller segments so that it is folded in origami style while launching and it gets expanded when it reaches its orbit. Hubble is healthy and kicking and still has a lot of time left in it to continue its job of observing and collecting data from our never-ending universe before it is declared dead or decommissioned, so the JWST is not a replacement for Hubble since it has a different way of looking into our universe. JWST mainly focuses on the infrared spectrum to study and observe, High redshift (phenomenon where electromagnetic radiation from stellar bodies undergoes an increase in wavelength) bodies and cold objects such as planets emits most strongly in the infrared spectrum, and this spectrum band is difficult to study from the ground or by existing space telescopes such as Hubble. Since heat is associated with infrared, the mirrors in JWST will be kept and maintained at a very lower temperature, i.e in the range of -250 degrees Celsius. The heat shield in the telescope helps in protecting the mirror from light and heat from the Sun, Moon, and Earth. Though the cost went from estimated $500 million to approximately $10 billion, still the scientific community is waiting for the launch and of JWST in 2021 so that it can fulfill its primary goal to search for light from the first stars and galaxies that formed in the Universe after the Big Bang and to study the formation and evolution of galaxies which can help in understanding the origin of life.
Some Science to ponder on: If the Universe is 4.5 billion years old then how are we able to observe galaxies that are 12 billion light-years away?
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