NASA's webb telescope will shoot a lens into the early universe next year - Designboom | Canada News Media
Connect with us

Science

NASA's webb telescope will shoot a lens into the early universe next year – Designboom

Published

4 years ago

 on



our knowledge of the cosmos will change when NASA launches its $10 billion webb telescope

in exactly one year, NASA‘s james webb telescope — a tennis court-sized telescope covered in honeycomb mirrors — will make its way into space. on it’s list of duties, the device will study the solar system, directly image exoplanets, photograph the first galaxies, and explore the mysteries of the origins of the universe.

image courtesy of NASA/chris gunn

named after james E. webb, a NASA administrator during the apollo era, the webb telescope is a joint venture between NASA, the european space agency (ESA), the canadian space agency (CSA) and space telescope science institute (STSCI). its’ mission is to look back through time to when galaxies were young. webb will do this by observing galaxies that are very distant, at over 13 billion light years away.

NASA/chris gunn

in order to do so, several innovative technologies have been developed for webb including a primary mirror made of 18 separate segments that unfold and adjust to shape after launch. made of ultra-lightweight beryllium — a metal that can endure extremely heat — this will ensure that the telescope holds its shape across a range of cryogenic temperatures, which is just what it would encounter in space on the webb telescope. this reflective surface will also act as the mirror needed to measure the light from these distant galaxies.

NASA/MSFC/david higginbotham

the telescope’s four instruments – cameras and spectrometers – have detectors that are able to record extremely faint signals. one instrument (NIRSPEC) has programmable microshutters, which enable observation up to 100 objects simultaneously. webb also has a cryocooler for cooling the mid-infrared detectors of another instrument (miri) to a very cold 7k so they can work.

NASA/chris gunn

on tuesday, march 30, 2021, webb will launch on a european ariane 5 rocket from the guiana space centre to the northwest of kourou in french guiana. after that, it will observe the universe from the second lagrange point (L2) around a million miles/1.5 million kilometers from earth, sending its images back to earth via NASA’s deep space network.

at least that is the plan. NASA administrator jim bridenstine recently announced that the work on the james webb space telescope had been paused because of the coronavirus crisis. the statement said that both nasa and northrop grumman are ‘suspending integration and testing operations’ on the multi-billion-dollar observatory, which is currently set for some testing at a northrop grumman plant in california.

project info

name: james webb telescope
agency: NASA

kieron marchese I designboom

mar 30, 2020

a diverse digital database that acts as a valuable guide in gaining insight and information about a product directly from the manufacturer, and serves as a rich reference point in developing a project or scheme.

technology news

mar 20, 2020

volkswagen unveils e-bulli, a 60s conversion with a 2020 electric drive

#technology

equipped with the drive system components of the latest volkswagen electric vehicles, the concept vehicle is based on a T1 samba bus produced in 1966 and »

equipped with the drive system components of the latest volkswagen electric vehicles, the concept vehicle is based on a T1 samba bus produced in 1966 and comprehensively restored.

×

keep up with our daily and weekly stories

504,132 subscribers

Let’s block ads! (Why?)



Source link

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Science

The body of a Ugandan Olympic athlete who was set on fire by her partner is received by family

Published

5 days ago

 on

September 13, 2024

By

 

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.

Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.

She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.

Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.

“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.

It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.

Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.

Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.

“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.

He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.

Kenya’s high rates of violence against women have prompted marches by ordinary citizens in towns and cities this year.

Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

News

The ancient jar smashed by a 4-year-old is back on display at an Israeli museum after repair

Published

6 days ago

 on

September 11, 2024

By

 

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.

Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.

Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.

The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.

The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.

It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.

Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.

Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.

Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.

Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.

Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.

The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

News

B.C. sets up a panel on bear deaths, will review conservation officer training

Published

1 week ago

 on

September 10, 2024

By

 

VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.

Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”

Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.

“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.

B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.

Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.

Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.

Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.

“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”

Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”

“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.

Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.

“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Source link

Continue Reading

Trending

Exit mobile version