Cosmic Cliffs: NASA’s Webb Telescope is revealing the cosmic cliffs and glittering landscape of star birth. In this article we will take a closer look at what it’s learne about the interstellar medium, how this helps us understand the potential for life in our own solar system, and how these images will help us understand more about other stars.
What is the Webb Telescope?
The Webb Telescope, which is set to launch in late 2018, will the most advance space telescope ever made. It will able to see farther into the universe than any other telescope. The Webb Telescope will also able to see objects that are too faint for other telescopes. The Webb Telescope was name after James E. Webb, who was the first person to the director of NASA.
Webb Highlights
NASA’s Webb Space Telescope has capture the most detail images yet of a region near the center of the Milky Way. The images, taken in infrare light, reveal cosmic cliffs and glittering landscapes of star birth. Webb also capture an image of a fiercely burning star known as an O-type supergiant. This image is one of the most detail views ever taken of this type of star.
The cosmic cliffs are Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI
“This new view from Webb illuminates an area close to the center of our galaxy that has never seen in such detail,” said Gary Flandro, principle investigator for Webb at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. “We can see deep into the heart of the galaxy and explore structures that have never seen .”
The star-forming site shown in the image is known the Ruprecht-Skiffington Whisky Factory, and it lies about 25,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation of Auriga. Webb’s infrare vision was able to penetrate the obscuring dust and gas that blocks our view of these newborn stars.
The fiery O-type supergiant Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI
“This new picture from Webb is a wonderful recognition for the science and designing capacities of our group,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, partner head for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. “Webb’s images convey the tantalizing possibilities for learning about the birth and evolution of stars.”
Where can I find more information about the Webb Telescope?
NASA’s Webb Telescope has reveal a cosmic landscape of cliffs, glittering landscapes of star birth and a “Great Wall” of gas and dust. The telescope is set to explore distant galaxies and unveil secrets of the universe.
How did NASA build this huge and amazing telescope?
The James Webb Space Telescope is a giant observatory that will help astronomers explore the universe far our own planet. The telescope’s huge mirror is made of 11 layers of glass, and it has nickname “the most powerful telescope ever built.”
Construction on the telescope in 2004, and it was finally complete in March 2018. Webb has a diameter of 6.5 meters (21 feet), and it weighs about 3.6 metric tons (7,500 pounds). It will able to see objects much farther away than any other Observatory currently in use.
Webb’s mirror was specially design to collect infrare light, which allows astronomers to see objects that are too faint for visible light telescopes. In addition to its incredible power, Webb also features some unique features that set it apart from other space telescopes. For example, Webb is equip with an infrare spectrometer that can identify different types of molecules present in an object.
This information can help astronomers understand how an object form and what it is compose of. Webb’s first observation session is schedule for early 2020, and astronomers are eager to start using its incredible capabilities.
What was discovered through the Webb Telescope?
The Webb Telescope has reveal an extraordinary cosmic landscape of star birth. The image shows a giant molecular cloud, which is a vast collection of gas and dust. The clouds are birthplace for new stars and planets. The large, bright regions in the image are where new stars are born. The smaller regions are where older stars have create planetary systems.
The Webb Telescope’s infrare vision can see through the dusty clouds to reveal the warm radiation from newborn stars and their surrounding planets. In particular, the telescope found evidence for several planets orbiting two nearby young stars. These discoveries were made by studying a special type of light known infrare emission. Which is emitt by substances that give off heat, such as planets and dust particles.
Conclusion
After months of preparations and a successful launch, NASA’s Webb Space Telescope has its search for new worlds our own. The first results from the telescope confirm that cosmic cliffs and glittering landscapes of star birth are common features in the universe. These stunning images were taken by Webb’s Wide Field Imager (WFI). Which is able to see details 10 times finer than any previous camera in space.