In precisely one year—on Tuesday, March 30, 2021—the almost US$10 billion James Webb Space Telescope (JWST or “Webb” for short) will launch on a European Ariane 5 rocket from the Gupiana Space Centre to the northwest of Kourou in French Guiana.
The telescope will replace Hubble in the space. The successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, “Webb” will study the solar system, directly image exoplanets, photograph the first galaxies, and explore the mysteries of the origins of the Universe.
By detecting infrared light, Webb will be able to look further back in time than any other telescope thus far. Webb is the most ambitious and complex space science telescope ever constructed, and tantalisingly soon will be the plaything of scientists … or, at least, that’s the plan.