Definition
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is an infrared space telescope project led by NASA with contributions of several other space agencies (including the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency). It is viewed as a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The JWST’s 6,200-kg telescope is hoping to be launched in 2018. It will orbit around the Sun-Earth L2 Lagrange point. Equipped with several cameras for various infrared wavelengths, it will pursue and augment the science carried out by HST. The ambitious scientific program is split into four main topics.
Fundamental cosmology seeks to identify the first bright objects that formed in the early Universe and to follow the ionization history of the Universe. For astronomers, the JWST will study how galaxies and dark matter, including gas, stars, physical structures (like spiral arms), and active nuclei, evolved up to the present day, as...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this entry
Cite this entry
Viso, M. (2014). JWST. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_835-2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_835-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics