Finally. It's About F**king Time. (WEBB: 25 Dec 2021)

[Jalpha]

I read somewhere ages ago some theory that they built two of them and are keeping the real launch secret in case the rocket explodes. Wouldn't surprise me.

The Arianne is an exceptionally reliable rocket though.

If something goes wrong it will be some kind of deployment issue with the sunshade. If anything at all goes wrong it can't be fixed. We can't send astronauts to L2. Which also means JWST will have a much shorter lifespan than Hubble.

Iirc Hubble required repairs before it could be used.

It will be interesting to see what kind of eyes get built on the moon in a few decades. Assuming of course that Artemis continues and/or other nations like China keep momentum going.

Pretty sure the Saudis are building their first moon rover.

[Harthel]

Funny to see a thread about JWST, I've been waiting for this thing to launch since like 2008/2009 lmao. I'll believe it when I see it, but I'm still excited after all these years. I bet there is a HUGE waitlist to use it.

It's a telescope that can see further into infrared than any other space telescope. That means it will be able to see through interstellar dust and debris much better to get a clearer view of the oldest stars. This will help scientists better understand the early conditions of the universe. Lots of possibilities. Cosmology has been a pretty popular field in the last decade, imo, and this damn telescope will finally take it to the next level.

If it survives/works lol.

[tripp]

please GOD tell me this wasnt tax funded...

please tell me they didnt take billions from taxpayers to shoot a hunk of metal into space...

[MadNomad]

please GOD tell me this wasnt tax funded...

please tell me they didnt take billions from taxpayers to shoot a hunk of metal into space...

such a waste.....

[mvgulik]

please GOD tell me this wasnt tax funded...

please tell me they didnt take billions from taxpayers to shoot a hunk of metal into space...

Awww. Poor clueless little mind(s).

I'm sure the USA would have done so much better without the whole tax funded NASA.
O perhaps every NASA projects should go trough the same process they use to pick there leaders. Yea that would be fun, letting the uneducated majority also dictate science projects.

The majority of spending by the United States government pays for social welfare programs and is not subject to annual congressional approval. This spending is referred to as "mandatory".
...
The Defense Department and related activities account for roughly half of all discretionary spending. All other government agencies and activities—including NASA—are funded from the remaining amount.
...
The United States government spent approximately $4.5 trillion in fiscal year 2019, of which just 0.5% ($22.6 billion) was provided to NASA.

[Zentetsuken]

it's really nice of america to spend so much time and money and resources doing this for the world, it's a shame that other nations like russia had absolutely nothing of value to contribute to the project, maybe it could have been done faster but i guess all the smartest minds in the world and all the best resources are in america so it makes sense god bless them for taking on this burden to improve humanity even for the lazy countries that did not contribute anything at all i guess they were the country who won the space race so it only makes sense

[mvgulik]

Always fun to see one side claim some victory for some ambiguous race by some self proclaimed win parameter.
... First spacecraft: Germany 1944. ...

...

Anyway ... Bad weather conditions (better save than sorry!) have pushed the target launch date to Dec. 25, as early as possible within the following launch window:
- Between 12:20 and 12:52 Universal (UTC)

[mvgulik]

Planned launch seems a go.

James Webb Space Telescope - Countdown to Launch - James Webb Live #NASA
(Already streaming with general background information doc's)

[mvgulik]

Flawless launch & JWST is now on its own power.

(it will now take about 6 month, if the rest goose just as flawless, for the JWST to become fully/officially operational).

Signing off.

[shubla]

So when will we get 4k pictures of planets.