NASA tells astronomers to submit proposals for James Webb Telescope observations

Hubble is nearing the end of its mission, and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has been under construction for years. Now that the telescope has been built and is undergoing final testing, NASA has turned its attention to the future — namely, what the Webb Telescope is going to do once it’s deployed. The space agency has asked astronomers to start submitting proposals for observations beginning in April 2019.

The JWST isn’t just a replacement for Hubble, it’s an evolution of what a space telescope can be. Its reflecting mirrors are considerably larger — a total area of 270 square feet composed of 18 hexagonal beryllium coated mirrors. Hubble has a mere 48 square feet in a single reflecting mirror. A mirror, which by the way, had a flaw that nearly doomed the telescope. A service mission had to be sent up to add what were essentially “eyeglasses” to Hubble to correct its vision. JWST’s multi-panel mirrors should be immune to such issues. It should be able to spot much dimmer points of light than Hubble as well.

Astronomers will be able to take on new research with the aid of the Webb Telescope thanks not only to the larger mirrors, but also its instrumentation. The JWST has been designed to see far into the infrared, allowing it to peer through layers of dust and gas that obscure Hubble’s view of many objects. In order to make this work, the JWST is being deployed very differently. Hubble is in orbit of Earth, but the James Webb Space Telescope is headed for the L2 Lagrange Point. This point of orbital equilibrium keeps objects on the opposite side of Earth from the sun, thus the temperature remains very near absolute zero.

James Webb space telescope

The JWST is currently undergoing vibration testing to make sure nothing will break when it’s launched. After all, NASA has spent over $8 billion on it so far, and it’s going to be much farther out in space where we can’t easily bolt on some new eyeglasses. Astronomers who want to have a shot at the first round of observations should submit their proposals. NASA expects to announce the first year of observations in late 2017. If a proposal is not selected, scientists can try again for the second cycle of observations.

Despite a hiccup in vibration testing last week, the James Webb Space Telescope is on-track to be launched in late 2018 on an Ariane 5 rocket. After some unusual readings, all testing was stopped while engineers checked over the telescope, but no damage was found. NASA is planning to resume testing later this month.

Now read: The 25 best Hubble Space Telescope images