NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope

1. NASA IS KEEPING THE JAMES WEBB TELESCOPE'S
FIRST TARGET SECRET

2. NASA has released a series of new images from the James Webb Space Telescope that offer a deeper look into the universe

3. This landscape of “mountains” and “valleys” speckled with glittering stars is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-
forming region called NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by NASA’s new James Webb Space
Telescope, this image reveals for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth.

4. Stephan’s Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies, is best known for being prominently featured in the holiday classic
film, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Today, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals Stephan’s Quintet in a new light.
This enormous mosaic is Webb’s largest image to date, covering about one-fifth of the Moon’s diameter. It contains
over 150 million pixels and is constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files. The information from Webb provides
new insights into how galactic interactions may have driven galaxy evolution in the early universe.

5. The dimmer star at the center of this scene has been sending out rings of gas and dust for thousands of years in all directions,
and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has revealed for the first time that this star is cloaked in dust.

6. Webb is currently at
its observing spot,
Lagrange point 2 (L2),
nearly 1 million miles
(1.6 million km). It is
the largest and most
powerful space
telescope ever launched.

7. How long will James Webb last?
Initially, Webb's mission lifetime
was projected to be at least 5-1/2
years. However, after the
successful launch of the
telescope, NASA found that the
observatory have enough
propellant (fuel) to support
scientific operations for
more than 10 years.

8. Unlike the Hubble Space
Telescope, which currently
orbits the Earth, James Webb's
orbit will have it gliding
through space around the sun.
It managed to reach the entry
point for its orbit, over one
million miles away on Monday,
January 24, 2022. It took the
telescope roughly one month to
reach its orbit point.

9. So why send Webb to orbit
Sun-Earth L2?
Because it is an ideal location
for an infrared observatory. At
Sun-Earth L2, the Sun and
Earth (and Moon, too) are
always on one side of space,
allowing Webb to keep its
telescope optics and
instruments perpetually shaded.

10. NASA has released a series of new images from the James Webb Space Telescope that offer a deeper look into the universe