James Webb Space Telescope achieves full deployment

NASA announced that its James Webb Space Telescope reached a major milestone on Saturday when the agency opened its gold-plated primary mirror.

The unfolding of the 6.5m primary mirror marked the completion of all primary spacecraft deployments to prepare for scientific applications.

The successful unfolding is a huge relief to NASA. Not only was the mission 20 years in the making, but the agency said it was also the most complicated deployment it has ever undertaken.

“The Webb observatory has 50 major deployments … and 178 release mechanisms to deploy those 50 parts,” mission systems engineer Mike Menzel explained.

“Every single one of them must work. Unfolding Webb is hands-down the most complicated spacecraft activity we’ve ever done.”

“Today, NASA achieved another engineering milestone decades in the making,” said Bill Nelson, NASA administrator.

“While the journey is not complete, I join the Webb team in breathing a little easier and imagining the future breakthroughs bound to inspire the world.”

#NASAWebb is fully deployed! 🎉

With the successful deployment & latching of our last mirror wing, that’s:
50 major deployments, complete.
178 pins, released.
20+ years of work, realized.

Next to #UnfoldTheUniverse: traveling out to our orbital destination of Lagrange point 2! pic.twitter.com/mDfmlaszzV

— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) January 8, 2022

More powerful than the Hubble Space Telescope and costing approximately $10 billion (R156 billion), the space science telescope will now begin aligning its 18 primary mirror segments.

NASA said the alignment would take months to complete, after which the team will calibrate the scientific instruments before delivering Webb’s first images later this year.

Webb will also undergo a third mid-course correction burn, which is one of three aimed at placing the telescope in orbit around the second Lagrange point. This point is located approximately 1,500km from Earth, on the other side of the moon relative to the planet.

“I am so proud of the team — spanning continents and decades — that delivered this first-of-its kind achievement,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, chief of NASA’s science missions.

“I’m emotional about it. What an amazing milestone. We see that beautiful pattern out there in the sky now.”

The James Webb Space Telescope launched at 14:20 on Christmas Day on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

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