James Webb Space Telescope Completes Deep-Freeze Testing

James Webb Space Telescope Completes Deep-Freeze Testing

NASA’s long-running James Webb Space Telescope project is nearing completion, but it needs a lot of testing before the agency sends it up into space where any undetected issues could prove disastrous. Several months ago, the completed telescope optical hardware was loaded into a vacuum chamber and cooled to extremely low temperatures. After removing Webb from the deep freeze, NASA now reports that all systems are go.

About $10 billion has been spent building the James Webb Space Telescope, but the construction phase was finished way back in late 2016. Since then, NASA has been conducting tests on the hardware to ensure it will operate correctly once in space. It would obviously like to avoid a repeat of Hubble’s launch, which required a Space Shuttle mission to correct its blurry vision in the early 90s. However, Webb will be much farther away than Hubble at the Earth-Sun L2 Lagrangian point.

Webb will be subjected to frigid temperatures at the L2 Lagrangian point, so the deep freeze test is a necessary step before launch. Engineers loaded the telescope into Chamber A at Johnson Space Center, which was depressurized and cooled to almost absolute zero (20-40 Kelvin). First on the agenda, NASA tested to make sure the 18 individual mirror segments would move and operate as a single unit in a cold vacuum — they worked perfectly. Next, the guidance system underwent testing. The team simulated the light of a distant star and told the telescope to track it. Webb’s sensors were able to spot the false star and follow it as it moved.

This phase of testing ended in late 2017 as the telescope was removed from the vacuum chamber, but the results give NASA confidence all the optical systems will work correctly in space. However, there’s still more testing to do. While construction of the Webb is complete, the hardware isn’t all integrated yet. The telescope’s next stop is Northrop Grumman’s facilities in Los Angeles. That’s where the optical component will join the main spacecraft body.

A render of Webb’s final configuration.
A render of Webb’s final configuration.

Engineers will go over the systems to ensure the sunshield deploys properly. Over 180 components need to work perfectly for the sunshield to deploy, and that’s essential to the mission. The shield protects Webb from the heat of the sun, allowing it to take more accurate mid-infrared readings. Scientists will also test that the hardware can survive the vibration associated with launch.

The James Webb Space Telescope will eventually make its way to French Guiana for launch aboard an ESA Ariane 5 rocket. That should happen in Spring 2019 if there are no delays.

Continue reading

Amazon’s Satellite Internet Antenna Pulls 400Mbps During Testing
Amazon’s Satellite Internet Antenna Pulls 400Mbps During Testing

Amazon's upcoming Project Kuiper service will be similar to Starlink, but the company claims its prototype Ka phased-array antenna will give it the edge.

Microsoft Now Testing Dual-Screen Gaming in Xbox Game Pass on Surface Duo
Microsoft Now Testing Dual-Screen Gaming in Xbox Game Pass on Surface Duo

Dual screen support has arrived in the latest Xbox Game Pass beta. Only a handful of devices can use the mode today, but it could meaningfully improve gaming on dual screen hardware.

Microsoft Kicks Unsupported PCs From Windows 11 Testing Program
Microsoft Kicks Unsupported PCs From Windows 11 Testing Program

As the October launch date for Windows 11 grows closer, Microsoft is standing firm on the new software's spec requirements. In fact, anyone running the beta on unacceptable hardware is being booted from the program, and their only option is to accept defeat and reinstall Windows 10.

NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Is Now Testing the Laws of Physics on Mars
NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Is Now Testing the Laws of Physics on Mars

Pull out your red-and-blue 3D glasses: Ingenuity's latest flight, at its lowest altitude ever, has returned a three-dimensional tableau of the Martian landscape, including one big rock.