Nasa overcame more than 300 critical stages in two “horror weeks”. The finished space telescope cools on the way to its destination.
9.1. 15:59
Space telescope All of James Webb’s devices have been unlocked. On Saturday evening, the last side of the main mirror was opened in Finnish time.
The mirror is 6.5 meters in diameter. It consists of 18 smaller mirrors, six of which were attached to the sides of the main mirror over the weekend.
All parts were opened from their packages in about two long weeks. Webb soared into space on December 25 from French Guiana without any problems.
Thousands of people who built and designed the web feared two weeks before the departure. They were nicknamed “Two Weeks of Horrors”.
Webbiin had to target a total of 344 different operations remotely. This is how it got out of its wrappers, all the way from the heat shield to the mirrors.
The telescope had 178 different mechanisms for opening the parts. Every operation had to be a success, though not a one-off. There was also the opportunity to open and restart the hinges, motors and belts.
But no new companies were needed once.
“Unbelievable,” he said Bill Ochs. He is the program manager for Nasa and Webb.
“We are now at a point where Webb is already over a million miles from the ground and we have a telescope operating there. Congratulations to everyone. ”
Webbin air traffic control in Baltimore, Maryland, rejoiced as it completed the final stages over the weekend. Air traffic control is located at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) at Johns Hopkins University.
Three hexagonal mirrors swirled on each side of the main mirror to the edges of the main mirror.
They had to be brought from the side of the main mirror 90 degrees into the 6.5 ° high sea. This brought together all the splendor, one large mirror with 18 separate mirrors.
Already on Wednesday, Webb’s auxiliary mirror was locked in place. It sat in front of the main mirror, at the end of three eight-meter-long booms.
The auxiliary mirror was packed against the main mirror at the start. One of the booms that supported it was the hinge joint.
Read more: Historically large and expensive space telescope Webb has fully opened in space, watch the video from the moment of opening
Mirror The 18 hexagonal parts are made of beryllium. It is a light metallic element that withstands even extreme cold well.
Now the hexagonal parts of the main mirror are tuned together. At the same time, they are still allowed to cool.
Each mirror is driven by seven separate motors behind them. With the help of the motors, the mirror can be subtly focused whenever the object of measurement changes.
In summer, the mirror begins to capture several objects in space, or rather their heat radiation.
There is also a motor in the middle of the mirror that can control the entire large mirror.
“With that engine, we can even change the curvature of the entire mirror,” he explains Lee Feinberg. He is an engineer in charge of NASA’s mirror systems.
The mirrors are plated with gold, but not because of the rust. Gold increases the reflection needed when weak infrared photons are retrieved from space through a mirror.
Observed radiation must be reflected and directed to devices that measure photons.
It is the auxiliary mirror that does this, because all the radiation collected by the large mirror is first directed and directed to the auxiliary mirror. It is only 74 cents in diameter.
The photons detected from the auxiliary mirror continue as a beam to the measuring devices immediately behind the main mirror.
There are four measuring devices, all tuned to detect infrared radiation.
On Thursday, January 6, radiation protection was also quickly tuned into place. It is a 1.2 times 2.4 meter aluminum-clad dark panel attached to the back of the observatory.
Its function is to protect black cells from heat, transfer heat to space and keep the measuring equipment cold enough.
The web has been compared to the famous space telescope Hubble, whose images have amazed the world.
Soon WebbIN the track is repaired for the third time. After that, it travels in peace towards the L2 point of space and its equipment still cools along the way. Observation requires very cold temperatures, even below 235 degrees below zero.
Webb will settle in the L2 area around January 23rd. In L2, Webb begins to orbit an almost circular orbit, with one lap lasting half a year.
The webb does not revolve around any object, but is held by small nozzles in an area where the gravity of any piece does not begin to directly attract it.
The first Webb’s observations will begin with these prospects in June.
It is almost certain that Webb will revolutionize astronomical research. It describes areas of space that have not been directly observed before.
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