The development took around 30 years and cost around 10 billion dollars. The “James Webb” telescope, which, among other things, is supposed to provide insights into the time after the Big Bang, has reached its destination.
According to the US space agency Nasa, the “James Webb” space telescope has reached its target orbit about a month after being launched into space.
“Webb, welcome home,” said NASA CEO Bill Nelson. At the end of the last course correction, the telescope started the engines for almost five minutes and reached the so-called second Lagrange point (L2) at a distance of almost 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. The telescope, built jointly by space agencies in Europe, the USA and Canada, is intended to explore the oldest galaxies in the universe.
🏠 Home, home on Lagrange! We successfully completed our burn to start #NASAWebb on its orbit of the 2nd Lagrange point (L2), about a million miles (1.5 million km) from Earth. It will orbit the Sun, in line with Earth, as it orbits L2. https://t.co/bsIU3vccAj #UnfoldTheUniverse pic.twitter.com/WDhuANEP5h
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) January 24, 2022
“James Webb” was launched on December 25 aboard an Ariane launch vehicle from the European space station in Kourou in French Guiana. During the flight, which lasted around four weeks, the sun protection of the telescope was opened and the mirror systems were extended, among other things. Scientists hope that the recordings will provide insights into the time after the Big Bang around 13.8 billion years ago.
The first data and images from the telescope are not expected until summer at the earliest. “We’re one step closer to unlocking the mysteries of the universe,” Nelson said. He can’t wait to see Webb’s first new views of the universe this summer. According to the operator, the “James Webb” telescope was developed for around 30 years and cost around 10 billion dollars (8.8 billion euros). It follows the Hubble telescope, which has been in use for more than 30 years. dpa
