Posted on Jul 21, 2022
The new science coming from the James Webb telescope has astronomers giddy
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https://www.npr.org/2022/07/21/ [login to see] /the-new-science-coming-from-the-james-webb-telescope-has-astronomers-giddy
Shockingly distant galaxies, clues about alien planets' atmospheres, and an unexpected weirdness around Jupiter are just some of the scientific treasures uncovered by the James Webb Space Telescope.
The days since the public unveiling of the telescope's first images have been action-packed for astronomers, who have been engulfed by a whirlwind of possible discoveries as they pore over the $10 billion telescope's early sightings.
"It's like a birthday and Christmas and an anniversary and a graduation and Thanksgiving and Hanukkah all wrapped into one for us, and happening just every day," says Jacob Bean of the University of Chicago.
"It works better than I think almost anyone hoped. It's really a miracle," says Rachel Somerville, an astronomer with the Flatiron Institute. "This is like nothing I've experienced."
The few stunning images that got featured at press conferences on July 11 and 12 represent just a fraction of what the telescope has seen since it launched in December and unfolded out in space.
Shockingly distant galaxies, clues about alien planets' atmospheres, and an unexpected weirdness around Jupiter are just some of the scientific treasures uncovered by the James Webb Space Telescope.
The days since the public unveiling of the telescope's first images have been action-packed for astronomers, who have been engulfed by a whirlwind of possible discoveries as they pore over the $10 billion telescope's early sightings.
"It's like a birthday and Christmas and an anniversary and a graduation and Thanksgiving and Hanukkah all wrapped into one for us, and happening just every day," says Jacob Bean of the University of Chicago.
"It works better than I think almost anyone hoped. It's really a miracle," says Rachel Somerville, an astronomer with the Flatiron Institute. "This is like nothing I've experienced."
The few stunning images that got featured at press conferences on July 11 and 12 represent just a fraction of what the telescope has seen since it launched in December and unfolded out in space.
The new science coming from the James Webb telescope has astronomers giddy
Posted from npr.org
Space
Science
Astronomy
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 3
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CSM Chuck Stafford
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel - What amazes me is that this new light is from stars some 13B miles away...and since light travels in all directions -- what is the light seeing 13B miles on the other side of the origin?
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."If all goes as planned, by this weekend Bean and his colleagues will know what the James Webb Space Telecope (JWST) managed to see as it stared at this world.
Until then, they just have to wait. "I think at one point I'll probably look up at the sky and be like, 'JWST is doing its thing right now, and it's looking at my favorite planet,'" says Bean. "That's a special moment."
..."If all goes as planned, by this weekend Bean and his colleagues will know what the James Webb Space Telecope (JWST) managed to see as it stared at this world.
Until then, they just have to wait. "I think at one point I'll probably look up at the sky and be like, 'JWST is doing its thing right now, and it's looking at my favorite planet,'" says Bean. "That's a special moment."
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