Skip to main content
Back to search
Space TelescopesPresentation

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission Status

James Webb20221 min read138 words
Michael McElwain, Lee Feinberg, Randy Kimble, Charles Bowers, J Scott Knight, Charles Atkinson, Marshall Perrin, Jane Rigby, Erin Smith, Christopher Stark, Susan Neff, Jonathan Gardner, and John Mather
Goddard Space Flight Center

The James Webb Space Telescope (Webb) is a large, infrared space telescope that recently completed its on-orbit commissioning activities and will now embark on the first year of approved science. Its architecture includes many first-of-its-kind innovations for space, including a segmented primary mirror that is 6.6 m in diameter and a 5-layer sunshield used to passively cool the telescope and its four science instruments. Although Webb had an extensive test program, the system-level performance often relied on predictions based on integrated modeling, using conservative factors for the model uncertainties and primarily focusing on evaluating the performance requirements at end of life. A set of commissioning activities were designed for a system-level characterization of the performance. This proceeding will provide the status of the mission, including a discussion of the major events, on-orbit system performance, and early science highlights.


Related Space Telescopes Documents