Telescope

Three galaxies are tearing each other apart in stunning new Hubble telescope image

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Three galaxies collide in this stunning new Hubble Space Telescope image showing the galaxy cluster IC 2431 about 681 million light-years from Earth. (Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, W. Keel, Dark Energy Survey, Department of Energy, Fermilab, Dark Energy Survey Camera, (DECam), Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, NoirLab/National Science Foundation/AURA, Sloan Digital Sky Survey; Acknowledgment: J. … Read more

James Webb Space Telescope will do a galaxy deep dive into the dust

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One of the James Webb Space Telescope‘s first studies will seek to tell us more about 19 nearby galaxies and how they fit into our neighborhood’s history. The infrared images taken from deep space will allow Webb’s data to add galactic information about star formation, strong winds blowing off these stars to disturb gas and … Read more

Star twinkles 18 times in new James Webb Space Telescope image

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The James Webb Space Telescope finished the first major stage in its long process of aligning the observatory’s 18-segmented primary mirror. A single star that the observatory looked at was deliberately rendered 18 times into a hexagonal shape. Eventually, those 18 images will perfectly align into a single, sharp focus, but the interim result portrays … Read more

When the next interstellar object comes, James Webb Space Telescope will be there to study it

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The next time a space rock races through our solar system from beyond, humans will be a little more prepared to unlock its secrets. To date, astronomers have identified two interstellar objects that came from other neighborhoods and rushed through the solar system. In 2017, there was ‘Oumuamua, and in 2018, Borisov followed, giving scientists … Read more

James Webb Space Telescope has locked onto guide star in crucial milestone

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The James Webb Space Telescope‘s key pointing instrument is working well in testing, according to two space agencies involved with the observatory’s commissioning work. The Fine Guidance Sensor (FGS), a contribution from Honeywell on behalf of the Canadian Space Agency, successfully  “locked on” to a specific guide star in tracking mode on Sunday (Feb. 13), … Read more

New X-Ray Space Telescope Shares Its First, Historic Glimpse of The Cosmos

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A new telescope designed to peer into the twisted X-ray Universe has just sent back its first-ever imaging data. The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE), a joint project between NASA and the Italian Space Agency, fixed its gaze on one of the most famous explosions in the Milky Way: Cassiopeia A.   Located 11,000 light-years … Read more

1st image from NASA’s new IXPE X-ray telescope looks like a ball of purple lightning

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IXPE’s first science image shows the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A.  (Image credit: NASA/CXC/SAO/IXPE) NASA’s newly-launched X-ray hunting probe has snapped its first science image and — wow — it’s spectacular. The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) probe launched Dec. 9, 2021, on a mission to observe objects like black holes and neutron stars in X-ray … Read more

Want to use the James Webb Space Telescope? Here’s how scientists book time with the giant observatory.

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The hottest commodity in astronomy these days is time — specifically, time using NASA’s brand-new, ultra-powerful observatory. The James Webb Space Telescope, also known as JWST or Webb, launched on Dec. 25, 2021, and is scheduled to begin science observations by this summer. Astronomers eagerly await that moment: Scientists believe that the telescope’s sensitivity and … Read more

JWST: James Webb Space Telescope just sent back its first image – of itself

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NASA engineers working to align the 18 hexagonal mirrors of the James Webb Space Telescope have released its first pictures. One shows the same star appearing 18 times, while a camera also took a ‘selfie’ of the mirrors Space 11 February 2022 By Leah Crane A selfie taken by a camera onboard the James Webb … Read more

‘Holy cow!’ How the James Webb Space Telescope took a selfie in space

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We’ve just seen the first up-close view of the James Webb Space Telescope hard at work in deep space. A special lens within the telescope’s near-infrared camera (NIRCam) instrument allowed engineers to take a look at Webb’s mirror alignment and to generate a cool view of the telescope, all at the same time. Engineers now … Read more