According to the US room trip authority NASA, the James WebB space telescope James Webb reached its target orbit around a month after the start of space. "Webb, welcome at home," said NASA boss Bill Nelson. The telescope on Monday (local time) at the end of the last course correction for almost five minutes started the engines and reached the second Lagrange point (L2) at almost 1.5 million kilometers away from the earth. With the telescope built together by space authorities in Europe, the USA and Canada, the oldest galaxies in space are to be explored.
James Webb was launched on 25 December 2021 on board an Ariane launcher from the European spaceport in Kourou in French Guiana. During the approximately four-week flight, among other things, the sun protection of the telescope was stretched and the mirror systems were extended. Among other things, scientists hope that the images will provide insights into the time after the Big Bang around 13.8 billion years ago.
The first data and pictures of the telescope are expected in summer at the earliest.
"We have come a step closer to the unveiling of the secrets of the universe," said Nelson.
He couldn't wait to see the first new views of the universe in the summer.
According to the operator, the James Webb telescope was developed for around 30 years and cost around $ 10 billion, equivalent to 8.8 billion euros.
This is followed by the Hubble telescope, which has been in use for more than 30 years.
(ASW)
