The Webb Telescope

@Liljo
Reminds me of a small episode when I was 14, introduced to new neighbors and they had a cat. So what's its name? We call him DAMMIT.

? We call him home, we go HERE DAMMIT, DAMMIT COME HOME....

@sonhouse said
@wildgrass
You mean anthropomorphizing it? Make it into the newest Puppet?

@liljo said
https://www.jwst.nasa.gov/content/webbLaunch/whereIsWebb.html

For anyone interested in how the "Webby" is doing, here's the link. It is under controlled cooling, and will be for a good while yet.

@bunnyknight said
Yes, that's a good website.

I only wish they had a real-time video link so that we could continuously keep an eye on Webby from at least 2 different angles.

@shallow-blue said
You... really don't understand how far away this thing is, do you?

@shallow-blue said
You... really don't understand how far away this thing is, do you?

@sonhouse said
@wildgrass
You mean anthropomorphizing it? Make it into the newest Puppet?

@bunnyknight said
Let's see... according to professor Elmer Shmogarpuff it's 729 light years away which would make the video delay about 729 years, and thus unpractical. But I think it's much less than 729 light years away and the professor is wrong.

@wildgrass
And that is RECENT history, astronomy peers into deep past time.
Now they see stuff around 12 BILLION light years away.

Close to the edge of visible light.

Right now, it appears the Webb only has a little ways to go to reach full operational temperature. The next steps to full operation are summed up in this, from NASA:

"Ongoing cooldown and eventual instrument turn-on, testing and calibration occur. Telescope mirror alignment and calibration also begin as temperatures fall within range and instruments are enabled."

@Liljo
They have already used some of the mirrors to capture first light.
Each one of the 18 hexagonal shaped mirrors are equal to a 48 in telescope so even one will produce science.

For all who are interested in first pictures:

in about half an hour there should be some here:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/

@Ponderable
Admittedly, I went to the site you mentioned quickly, then hurriedly read the latest blog dated Feb 10...Where do you get the info to see "first images"? I figured the first images to be made public were still a few, to maybe several, months away...


However: Upon further investigation, I found THIS site!
https://www.space.com/[WORD TOO LONG].

Well, it has imaged it's first star. Each of the 18 mirror segments imaged it. They will use that to align with so there will be one image of the star soon!
The alignment process is expected to take 3 months.

@liljo said
Well, it has imaged it's first star. Each of the 18 mirror segments imaged it. They will use that to align with so there will be one image of the star soon!
The alignment process is expected to take 3 months.