The james Webb space telescope main mirror is fully unfolded

On May 10, 2007, NASA presented the next generation of space telescopes, the James Webb Space Telescope, to the media and the public on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. This is a hypothetical image of the James Webb Space Telescope working in space. (Photo by Xinhua news agency reporter Lu Mingxiang)

Washington, 8 Jan (Xinhua) -- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration announced on 8 January that the main mirror of the James Webb space telescope has been fully launched in space, and the main deployment work of the telescope before scientific exploration has been completed. Researchers look forward to using the telescope to explore the history of various stages of the universe and understand the origins of many celestial systems.

According to NASA, the Webb Space Telescope is the largest and most powerful space telescope built by the agency to date. The main mirror is 6.5 meters in diameter and consists of 18 huge hexagonal spires with 5 layers of unfoldable visors. Due to its sheer size, the Webb Space Telescope was launched in a folded state.

The ground controller remotely unfolded the 3 folding lenses on the left side of the main mirror on the 7th, and the 3 folding lenses on the right side on the 8th, so that the 18-piece spire of the main mirror was fully expanded. Next, ground controllers will spend several months calibrating the equipment. The telescope is expected to send back the first images taken this summer.

The Webb Space Telescope was jointly researched and developed by NASA with the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency, and is considered the "successor" to the Hubble Space Telescope. The Hubble Space Telescope observes mainly in the visible and ultraviolet wavelengths, while the Webb Space Telescope observes mainly in the infrared band.

The goal of the Webb Space Telescope mission is mainly in four aspects: to find the first galaxies born in the universe more than 13.5 billion years ago; to study the various stages of galaxy evolution; to observe the formation of stars and planetary systems; to determine the physical and chemical properties of planetary systems, including the planetary systems of the solar system; and to study the possibility of life in other planetary systems.

The Webb Space Telescope was launched from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana on December 25, 2021, to Lagrange Point, the second solar-Earth system. It takes about a month to fly to reach this deep space region, which is about 1.5 million kilometers from Earth.