James Webb Space Telescope may remain in use longer than expected – IT Pro – News

The James Webb Space Telescope, which launched on December 25, could be used much longer than previously thought. Far less fuel is needed for course corrections than expected en route to its final orbit, leaving fuel for at least a decade.

The telescope has much more fuel left than expected because the telescope during the launch needed less to get on course, because the rocket helped the telescope right on course, while an additional course correction was expected. Also, the telescope used much less fuel during its first and second course corrections at 25 in 27 december, than was calculated.

The NASA team directing the telescope on its way to his final destination, the second Lagrangian point called L2, says that because extra fuel is available, the telescope will last ‘much longer’ than ten years, longer than its scientific life. It is a huge boost for the team, who assumed that the telescope would last at least five years, but no longer than ten years.

The telescope uses the fuel not only for course corrections, but also necessary functions during the mission, such as station keepingmaneuvers, to keep James Webb on course, and to point the telescope in the right direction.

Tweakers recently published four articles about James Webb, in which the general wallpapers, the NIRSpec spectrograph, the mid-infrared instrument in the importance of data reduction were discussed. There is also another backstory in particular zooming in on the distinguishing factor of the James Webb telescope from Hubble, namely the focus on the infrared part of the spectrum.