The first full-color images from the Webb telescope will be released July 12, NASA announced Wednesday.
Early alignment of the telescope’s mirrors/camera have shown an unprecedented sharpness. The new images in July will be the first to reveal full capabilities.
“Our goals for the first images and data are both to showcase the telescope’s powerful instruments and to preview the science mission to come,” said astronomer Klaus Pontoppidan, Webb project scientist at Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. “They are sure to deliver a long-awaited ‘wow’ for astronomers and the public.”
The Webb project focuses on the early universe, how galaxies have changed through time, the lifecycle of stars and more.
Also on July 12, all of Webb’s data from the alignment process and instrumentation is to be released to the public.
The Webb Telescope, launched last Christmas Day, was largely designed and built at Northrop Grumman in Redondo Beach, beginning in 2002. ER
