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The James Webb Space Telescope: How to reveal the oldest stars in the universe?
Since the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) was launched from French Guiana on December 25, 2021, its potential for exploring the universe has attracted widespread attention. This astronomical telescope is not only the largest space telescope currently in existence, but also has powerful capabilities, capable of detecting celestial bodies that are older, more distant, or fainter than the Hubble Space Telescope. One of the main tasks of JWST is to observe the formation process of the earliest stars and galaxies in the universe.
"We hope to use JWST to reveal the early history of the universe, an area that we humans do not yet fully understand."
JWST is designed to perform infrared astronomical observations and has a primary mirror with a diameter of 6.5 meters, 2.7 times that of Hubble. This gives JWST greater light-collecting power, allowing it to observe fainter objects than Hubble. Its optical design and advanced instruments allow JWST to peer through clouds of interstellar dust and detect infrared radiation from cooling stars and other cosmic objects.
JWST's current orbit is at the Sun-Earth L2 Lagrange point, about 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. This position not only remains stable, but also continuously avoids the direction of the Sun, Earth, and Moon, thus providing the required low temperature environment suitable for JWST to make precise observations.
"JWST's solar shield can effectively block thermal radiation from the sun, the earth and the moon, ensuring that the telescope operates in an extremely cold environment."
The James Webb Space Telescope has four major science instruments, each focused on a different observational task. The most eye-catching of these is the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam), which is not only JWST's wavefront sensor, but also capable of capturing images of the early universe. For example, NIRCam can observe faint sources with 10 times the sensitivity of Hubble, making it a key tool for studying the formation of early galaxies.
In addition to NIRCam, JWST is equipped with the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), which specializes in longer wavelength infrared light, which is critical in observing cooling stars and the formation of interstellar clouds. The combined use of these instruments provides astronomers with unprecedented opportunities to reveal the earliest structures and objects in the Universe.
"The JWST's design and technological breakthroughs will allow us to explore areas of the universe that have never been observed before, which will help us understand the formation of stars and galaxies."
In addition to providing deeper cosmic observation capabilities, the existence of JWST also means that there is additional hope for the exploration of finding habitable planets. JWST's observation range will be able to analyze the atmospheric composition of exoplanets, providing new clues in the search for extraterrestrial life. By comparing the characteristics of these planets, scientists hope to find planets similar to Earth and perhaps even discover signs of life.
Although JWST has undergone a long design, construction, and testing process compared to its predecessor Hubble, the new horizons it opens make all the efforts worthwhile. The investment in JWST is over $10 billion, but all of this money is spent to uncover the mysteries of the universe and enhance human understanding of its evolution.
As JWST began sending back data, the scientific community grew increasingly excited about its potential, especially for observing the early history of the universe. Can JWST successfully reveal the secrets of that era and answer the big questions about the origin of the universe at a deeper level?
