Originally published at: Here's why the new James Webb Space Telescope is so damn cool | Boing Boing
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prays to the gods that the JWST mirror properly unfurls instead of pulling a Galileo and ends up a useless pile of junk at L2
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It’s so damned cool to be able to detect IR, duh. (6 Kelvin to be exact)
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This is a rough idea of how much further into space/time the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will see compared to Hubble (HST)… Hubble can see some of the first galaxies, JWST will be back to the first stars! 
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Part of me wants the Webb telescope to pull up to its Lagrange point only to find the it filled with alien space junk.
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I know the Ariane V has a stellar record of reliability over many years, but even so - I’m really sweating this launch. Goodness knows how the people who have literally invested their entire careers in the JWST must be feeling right now.
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This is the only thing outside my 4 walls I’m looking forward to. If this goes wrong, I’m done. Quitting the internet, cashing in, going underground.
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We have some other telescopes out at L2 already. So it won’t be alone.
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Don’t worry there’s only about 380 points in the deployment process that if things go wrong it will be irrecoverably broken.
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with well over three hundred procedures to go through it’s got to be… otherwise
before results
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I’m hoping it’s going to peer back to the almost origin of the first stars and then wait…what’s this? In the distance, 1 billion light years behind those first stars…more galaxies, from a totally different universe.
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Lately clicking any link or videos on Boing Boing has been opening an advertisement in a new tab. Today trying to play the James Webb video it starts downloading something?! Chrome on iOS 15. The advertising has gotten Completely out of hand over the years. I’d gladly pay to make it stop.
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Mister Eggs-In-One-basket sez…
When it is up there and taking pictures, then it is cool. Not before. Man, I hope it does. The Hubble Spare Telescope was ‘The Rubble Space Telescope’ until they fixed it. I knew she of the people who were working on blind deconvolution to refocus it. All public confidence in space science nearly went back then. It could go again. This isn’t how things should go, but public funds put these things there.
I don’t believe crossing fingers helps, but on the 22nd I might just be doing it just in case…
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Goddamn, that was so inspiring. And thanks to all the nerds populating the BBS who put this into deeper context. I’ve been excited for JWT, but between this and the comments, I’m on the verge of tears.
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in today’s world it is sometimes easy to forget how many absolutely brilliant people are out there doing amazing things in the name of science. the politically-driven noise you hear in some media running down doctors, technicians, engineers, and researchers can be so heartbreaking. these people are responsible for EVERY SINGLE ADVANCEMENT we have made in medicine, technology and exploration in the entirety of human history. what a joyful little film about an amazing feat. restores my faith.
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That WAS a great explainer.
Having just watched Brian Cox’s ‘Universe’ I’m looking forward to a future series with even more amazing images, from JWST.
Though I could do with a lot less of Brian Cox standing on the top of hills gazing into the distance and generally just narrating - with - long - pauses - mid - sentence - from wild places around the globe because … well, just because they can. Even though it adds zero value to the programmes.
Also, it is a shame this video’s narrator cannot pronounce ‘mirror’.
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aw crap, I don’t need another media upgrade. I’m sticking with my Hubble pics, just like I stuck with my wax cylinders when vinyl came along.
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Very cool indeed.
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It may be cool eventually. If they can manage to launch it. If they didn’t totally screw up some critical part of the design. If they can get it into the proper position. If it operates when it gets there. If it lasts long enough to produce useful results. Cynic that I am, I keep thinking of how cool Hubble was supposed to be until it was proven to be effectively blind before major repairs were undertaken. You keep thinking cool and I’ll keep waiting to make my decision.
That sort of undermines your argument. Hubble was defective and then they fashioned a contact lens for a frickin’ space telescope and fixed it and Hubble worked great for 30 years. If something goes wrong with JWT it’s not the end of the line.
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