Tag: Primary Mirror

SPACE reports that NASA and ESA have pushed the launch date of the James Webb Space Telescope back to December 18. The James Webb Space Telescope has not yet shipped to the ESA launch site at Kourou, French Guiana, and will require about 10 weeks turnaround time from its shipping date.
Full Story (SPACE)

SPACE reports that NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope “has unfurled its big golden mirror for the final time on Earth ahead of its planned launch later this year.” The $9.8 billion space telescope “opened its 21.3-foot-wide (6.5 meters) primary mirror recently during a test at the Los Angeles-area facilities of its main builder, the aerospace giant Northrop Grumman.” The mirror, “which is composed of 18 hexagonal segments, is too wide to fit inside the payload fairing of any currently operational rocket, so it will launch in a compact configuration and deploy after reaching space. The ongoing test is the last major trial for the mirror system, and its completion will mark a big milestone on the path to launch, mission team members said.” The James Webb Space Telescope “is scheduled to lift off atop an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket on Oct. 31 from Kourou, French Guiana.”
Full Story (Reuters)

SlashGear reports that the James Webb Space Telescope “has hit three new significant milestones, as NASA prepares to launch the powerful instrument later this year.” The tower assembly on the telescope “was recently deployed to its full, 10 meter (33 feet) length, before being stowed” in the telescope. The “‘lens cap’ of the telescope – officially known as the AOS, or Aft Optics Subsystem, cover – has been removed. It was left in place as Webb was assembled, but has been taken off so as to allow the telescope to be folded up.” Additionally, the NASA team “has now folded the Unitized Pallet Structure – on which the sunscreen rests – up into their final launch configuration.”
Full Story (SlashGear)