This set of images provided by NASA on Monday shows part of the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way, seen by the retired Spitzer Space Telescope, left, and the new James Webb Space Telescope. (NASA/JPL-Caltech, NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP)
Estimated reading time: less than a minute
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida — NASA’s new space telescope is in the testing phase, astronomers said Monday, with scientific observations expected to begin in July.
The James Webb Space Telescope has returned the latest test images of a neighboring satellite galaxy, and the results are stunning when compared to images taken by NASA’s previous infrared observatory, the Spitzer Space Telescope.
Each of the 18 mirror sections in the new telescope is larger than the single section on Spitzer.
“You won’t actually see the kind of image it provides until you really take in it and go,” said Marcia Rick of the University of Arizona, chief scientist for the near-infrared webcam. “Just think about what we’re going to learn.”
Launched last December, Webb is the largest and most powerful astronomical observatory ever sent into space. It will seek the light emitted by the first stars and galaxies nearly 14 billion years ago, and will closely monitor for possible signs of life.
Scientists keep the identity of Webb’s first official target secret.
Located 1 million miles (1.6 million km) from Earth, Webb is considered the successor to the old Hubble Space Telescope.