NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope launched at 7:20 a.m. EST Saturday on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport.
Read MoreMonth: December 2021
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope launches on epic mission to study early universe
NASA just got a $10 billion space telescope for Christmas. An Ariane 5 rocket launched today (Dec. 25) from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 7:20 a.m. EST (1220 GMT; 9:20 a.m. local time in Kourou), carrying the highly anticipated, long-delayed James Webb Space Telescope — and the hopes and dreams of countless astronomers, astrophysicists and planetary scientists around the world — into the final frontier. The huge telescope will peer at the universe’s first stars and galaxies, sniff the atmospheres of nearby alien planets and perform a variety…
Read MoreGetting Started with Your New Telescope
How to start right using a new telescope — a guide to what you need to know, how to set it up, and things you can start finding with it in tonight’s sky. The post Getting Started with Your New Telescope appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Read MoreHere’s the space weather forecast for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope launch
Strong winds and rain at the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, were responsible for the latest delay of the James Webb Space Telescope launch. But there is also another type of weather that might interfere with the grand telescope’s journey to orbit: space weather. So what does the space weather forecast look like for the upcoming big day of international astronomy? NASA experts are keeping a close eye on three aspects of space weather to greenlight James Webb Space Telescope‘s launch: the global index of geomagnetic activity (also known…
Read MoreThe Christmas night sky: A 2021 Yuletide stargazing guide
Christmas is almost here, and the night sky obliges by presenting a beautiful display of celestial sights, perfectly timed out to coincide with the holiday. In ancient times, Dec. 25 was the date of the lavish Roman festival of Saturnalia, a sort of bacchanalian Thanksgiving to the god of agriculture, for whom the slowest moving of the then-known planets was named. Saturnalia was celebrated on the date of the winter solstice by the calendar then in use, and it also marked the fact that the sun had stopped creeping southward…
Read More30 years and $10 billion later, the James Webb Space Telescope is finally on the launch pad
NASA and the astronomy community have poured $10 billion and more than two decades into just one piece of machinery. Now they are facing the moment of truth. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, also known as Webb or JWST, is finally in French Guiana, perched atop its rocket, ready to bid farewell to Earth and begin the long trek out to space. It has overcome loose screws, testing missteps, a Congressional cancellation, a pandemic and even the small risk of being hijacked by pirates on its way to the launch…
Read MoreThis Week’s Sky at a Glance, December 24 – January 1
Crescent Venus, ever thinner and lower in twilight, dives toward the Sun. Jupiter and Saturn bide their time. The bright winter constellations fill the east after dark. Mars and Antares pair up at dawn. The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 24 – January 1 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.
Read MoreWatch an exclusive sneak peek at ‘The Expanse’ Season 6 Episode 3 (video)
If you’re not already watching “The Expanse” on Amazon Prime Video right now, go and do so immediately. Space.com has exclusively been given a clip from the next episode entitled “Force Projection” that will air at midnight PST on Friday (Dec. 24). In the clip, we see a tender moment behind Holden and Naomi that yields a clue for events to come. This sixth and final season picks up with the solar system engaged in all-out war, as Marco Inaros (Keon Alexander) continues to launch devastating asteroid attacks on Earth…
Read MoreWhen did scientists first warn humanity about climate change?
Climate change warnings are coming thick and fast from scientists; thousands have signed a paper stating that ignoring climate change would yield “untold suffering” for humanity, and more than 99% of scientific papers agree that humans are the cause. But climate change wasn’t always on everyone’s radar. So when did humans first become aware of climate change and the dangers it poses? Scientists first began to worry about climate change toward the end of the 1950s, Spencer Weart, a historian and retired director of the Center for History of Physics at the American Institute of Physics…
Read MoreSpace Station Science Highlights: Week of December 20, 2021
Crew members aboard the International Space Station conducted scientific investigations during the week of Dec. 20 that included examining formation of amyloid fibrils, analyzing the effect of impurities in protein crystals, and studying adaptation of muscle tissues.
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