James Webb Telescope

 

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is NASA's most advanced space telescope, launched on December 25, 2021. It's a collaboration between NASA, ESA (European Space Agency), and CSA (Canadian Space Agency). Its main mission is to study the universe's earliest galaxies, stars, and planets in infrared light, which allows it to see through dust clouds and look farther back in time than any telescope before.

Key features:

• Location: It orbits around the second Lagrange point (L2), about 1.5 million km from Earth.
• Mirror: It has a massive 6.5-meter gold-coated mirror made of 18 hexagonal segments.
• Instruments: Equipped with four major scientific instruments (like NIRCam and MIRI) to study everything from exoplanets to the formation of galaxies.

What it’s doing:

• Taking insanely detailed images of galaxies, nebulae, and distant planets.
• Analyzing the atmospheres of exoplanets for signs of habitability.
• Giving scientists a peek into the early universe, just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang.