The instruments can decipher what molecules (such as water, carbon dioxide, and methane) exist in the atmospheres of distant exoplanets - be they gas giants or smaller rocky worlds. Peer into distant exoplanets: The Webb telescope carries specialized equipment, called spectrometers, that will revolutionize our understanding of these far-off worlds. Ultimately, Webb's infrared eyesight can penetrate places the legendary Hubble Space Telescope can't. Infrared has longer wavelengths than visible light, so the light waves more efficiently slip through cosmic clouds the light doesn't as often collide with and get scattered by these densely-packed particles. Look at the cosmos in infrared light, which allows us to see far more of the universe. 'We're going to see the very first stars and galaxies that ever formed,' Jean Creighton, an astronomer and the director of the Manfred Olson Planetarium at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, told Mashable last year. Peer at stars and galaxies that formed over 13 billion years ago, just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang. With the Webb telescope at peak performance, astronomers plan to: (The telescope used less propellant than planned in order to arrive at its outpost some 1 million miles from Earth.) Originally, NASA hoped the instrument would last five years, and the agency was initially pleased to learn it would operate with adequate propellant for over 10 years. And its overall performance at clearly viewing objects is better than requirements.Īnd if that wasn't enough good news, Webb's scientists have concluded it has enough finite fuel aboard to help power the mission for 20 years. Its guidance system, which locks onto and tracks targets, is better than required. Why is Webb expected to overachieve? Its mirrors are cleaner than required to meet its lofty scientific objectives. 'The science performance of JWST is better than expected.' 'Moreover, almost across the board, the science performance of JWST is better than expected,' Webb's scientists wrote. NASA and its collaborative partners, the Canadian Space Agency and the European Space Agency, concluded that Webb - even after a speeding micrometeoroid (a small often dust-sized rock particle) hit and caused a 'significant uncorrectable change' to one of the telescope's 18 gold-coated hexagonal mirrors - is 'fully capable of achieving the discoveries for which it was built.'Ĭrucially, they expect Webb to exceed expectations. What did scientists conclude about the Webb telescope's condition?

The James Webb telescope's first stunning cosmic images are here

James webb space telescope