Beyond that, there are also the technical challenges of building a complex observatory that is designed to operate in space. Not only does all of this represented a very technically-challenging feet, it is the first time that any space telescope has had to perform it. The James Webb Space Telescope’s sunshield being deployed inside a cleanroom at Northrop Grumman’s company headquarter’s, in October 2017.

Once it reaches its destination, the telescope will have to unfold again, deploying its sunshield, mirrors and primary mirror. This is largely because of the telescope’s complicated design, which needs to be folded in order to fit inside the Ariane 5 rocket that it will carry it into space. These final tests are crucial to ensuring that that the observatory deploys properly and can operate once it is in space. Webb is far along into its testing phase and has seen great success with the telescope and science instruments, which will deliver the spectacular results we anticipate.” “Extensive and rigorous testing prior to launch has proven effective in ensuring that NASA’s missions achieve their goals in space. As Eric Smith, the program director for the JWST at NASA Headquarters, said in a recent NASA press statement: Once both halves are finished being integrated, addition testing will be performed to guarantee the fully assembled observatory can operate at the L2 Earth-Sun Lagrange Point.

These will soon undergo a launch environment test to prove that they are ready to be combined with the science payload. The other half of the observatory consists of the integrated spacecraft and sunshield, which is in the final phase of assembly at the Northrop Grumman company headquarters. The science payload was also tested at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center last year to ensure it could handle the vibrations associated with space launches and the temperatures and vacuum conditions of space. The Space Telescope Transporter for Air, Road and Sea (STTARS) being opened at Northrop Grumman on March 8th, 2018, to reveal the combined optics and science instruments of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. This constitutes half the observatory, and includes the telescope’s 6.5 meter (21.3 foot) golden primary mirror. This final phase consisted of removing the combined optics and science instruments from their shipping containers – known as the Space Telescope Transporter for Air, Road and Sea (STTARS) – which recently arrived after being testing at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Once complete, the JWST will be ready to ship to French Guiana, where it will be launched into space. Luckily, on Thursday, March 8th, engineers at the Northrop Grumman company headquarters began the final step in the observatory’s integration and testing.

Unfortunately, the launch of the JWST has been subject to multiple delays, with the launch date now set for some time in 2019. As the spiritual and scientific successor to the Hubble, Spitzer, and Kepler space telescopes, this space observatory will use its advanced suite of infrared instruments to the look back at the earliest stars and galaxies, study the Solar System in depth, and help characterize extra-solar planets (among other things). Once deployed, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be the most powerful telescope ever built.

Phew wallops