NASA
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NOS News•today, 11:58
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Ivo Landman
editor Online
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Ivo Landman
editor Online
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The new James Webb Space Telescope has been hailed in recent days for its razor-sharp images from the farthest reaches of the observable universe. But the telescope can also zoom in on objects in our cosmic backyard. The American space agency NASA has released photos of Jupiter, which mainly used the telescope to test its instruments.
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At first glance it is a somewhat faded photo of the gas giant, especially compared to the images we are used to from, for example, the Juno-probe. But NASA is excited about it: The infrared images show not only the planet but also several moons and Jupiter’s thin rings bright and sharp.
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“I can’t believe everything can be seen so clearly and so brightly,” said Stefanie Milam, one of NASA’s planetary scientists. According to Bryan Holler, a colleague at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, the photos show how versatile the James Webb is. “This shows the full extent of what Webb can observe, from the most distant galaxies to planets you can see for yourself with the naked eye.”
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JWST/NASA
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Images of Jupiter at a different wavelength, also showing the rings –
After months of testing and calibration, the first ‘real’ photos of the brand new telescope were released on Tuesday. presented. Comparisons with the predecessor of the space telescope, Hubble, are now being shown on more and more sites.
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NASA
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SMACS 0723, a cluster of galaxies, seen by Hubble (l) and Webb (r) –
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NASA
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Stephan’s Quintet, a group of galaxies in the constellation Pegasus through the lenses of Hubble (l) and Webb (r) –
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NASA
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The Carina Nebula as seen by Hubble (l) and Webb (r) –
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The first image released by NASA shows a patch of space strewn with colorful dots. In The News BV on NPO Radio 1, astronomy professor Vincent Icke explained what can actually be seen on it. “If you look a little closer, you can see that every speck is a galaxy, where every speck is the size of our Milky Way, in the depths of the universe, 13 billion years ago, 800,000 years after the Big Bang. Looking out into space is looking back on time.”
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In the near future, Webb will aim his huge mirror at many more cosmic objects. Scientists may submit requests for this. Next summer the telescope will be on two exoplanets be targeted. These are planets orbiting a star other than the sun.
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