If you don't know what it is already, the James Webb Telescope is, more or less, the telescope to replace the Hubble Telescope. It has been years in the making with multiple date push backs, however, it is scheduled to launch in about a year. One reason you may have not heard of it is because there are so many different things that could go wrong, NASA doesn’t want to overhype this massive telescope incase it fails. If everything stays on course and goes according to plan, though, the James Webb will lead to huge improvements in our understanding of the universe.
First, the reason why I stated that the James Webb will “more or less” replace the Hubble is because currently the Hubble orbits the earth. While this new telescope does give us the ability to repair it and check in on the biggest telescope of all time, it is somewhat still limiting to what the Hubble can capture. On the other hand, the James Webb will be orbiting the Sun, about a million miles away from Earth. This is one of the main reasons why the building process has taken so long. There is only one shot at launching this thing and if even one thing goes wrong, it’s all a multi-billion dollar wash.
The pay off, though, is huge. Orbiting the sun creates so many new dimensions of capturing the universe. We’ll be given a completely different view of earth, our solar system, and even our galaxy. Additionally, the Hubble was launched back on April 24th, 1990. So, in the last 28 years technology has certainly come a very long way. The new technology the James Webb will use will just be incredible compared to the Hubble. For 28 years we have been astounded by the photos the Hubble has captured. Basically every beautiful, starry picture you see is due to the Hubble. Now, in only about a years time, the images of the universe that will be revealed to us will be absolutely mind-boggling.
The major hope is that with the James Webb we will gain a far greater understanding into the earliest light from the universe. Remember that looking into the stars is like traveling back in time. The light we see is millions of years old. The images we have now of the earliest light from the universe is very vague and blurry. With the James Webb, hopefully, we will be able to see all this ancient light. We may even be able to see stars or stardust from immediately after the Big Bang. I’m talking 13.8 BILLION years here, people. We may have an answer to how the universe was actually created.
I know it’s still a ways away, but just keep the James Webb Telescope launch in the back of your mind. It will be the most exciting space launch since the Hubble.
