James Webb Space Telescope: How does it work and what will it see?
The early Universe The JWST will be able to look back to around 200 million years after the Big Bang, when the first stars in the Universe formed. To see this period in cosmic history, we need sensitive infrared instruments to detect the faint traces of light that have travelled through space and time to reach us.
Ancient Galaxies
The JWST will also look back to the very first galaxies in the Universe to learn more about their evolution and why there’s so much variety in them
- Examining galaxies can also inform us of the macrostructure of the Universe and how it’s organised on a large scale
Our ice giants
The JWST will take a closer look at two of the least understood planets in our Solar System, Neptune and Uranus
Pluto and the Kuiper Belt Objects
The JWST is powerful enough to study icy bodies including comets, which are often-pristine leftovers from our Solar System’s days of planet formation and could hold clues to Earth’s origins.
- There are no planned missions dedicated to the outer Solar System for years, so new observations and data will play a big part in planning for future planetary missions.
Dark matter
Considered to be the scaffolding for the Universe, we’re only able to observe dark matter indirectly by measuring how its gravity affects stars and galaxies.
Exoplanet atmospheres
The JWST will help answer the big question of whether life exists beyond Earth by studying a variety of exoplanets – planets outside our Solar System
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