Who cares about the next big thing? The next, next big thing is where most scientists’ heads are at. So even before the Hubble Space Telescope had launched, plans were well underway for a successor telescope that would open up a whole ‘new sky’
Now due for launch in spring 2019, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will weigh around half as much as the Hubble but its primary mirror will have a collecting area roughly five times as large. That’s not the main difference though. The real game changer, which will enable JWST to study more and much older stars and galaxies, is that it will see in infrared.
Positioned around one million miles from earth, this – the most powerful telescope of its kind – should be able to look back in time to see the first galaxies forming after the Big Bang, as well as the evolution of our own solar system.
Paradoxically, ‘seeing red’ actually requires the telescope to be kept incredibly cold, otherwise JWST’s on-board instruments will be ‘blinded’ by its own background heat. The telescope is therefore equipped with the mother of all sunshades. Forget your SPF 90; the JWST has its own tennis-court sized sunshield, maintaining equipment temperatures at or below an astronomically chilly −220 °C or −370 °F.
* All costs calculated in 2017 $US
