09/15/2009: Webb Space Telescope Begins to Take Shape at Goddard

A major component of the Webb telescope, the Integrated Science Instrument Module structure, recently arrived at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. for testing. The Integrated Science Instrument Module, or ISIM, is the skeleton that will hold Webb’s four scientific instruments, electronics, harnesses, and other components.

Read more: NASA (external link)

07/31/2009: James Webb Space Telescope Mirrors Are Readied for Test

Three of the 18 James Webb Space Telescope mirror segments have been mounted on a test stand July 30 at the X-ray & Cryogenic Facility at NASA’ s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The mirror segments will be chilled to minus 414 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure they can withstand the extreme temperatures of space.

Read more: NASA (external link)

07/15/2009: Keeping a "Trained Eye" on the James Webb Space Telescope

NASA and Northrop Grumman training their engineers on how to handle and assemble the telescope’s Optical Telescope Element (OTE), also known as the “eye” of the telescope. A mock-up of the OTE’s Primary Mirror Backplane Assembly, which supports the telescope’s mirror segments, was used to simulate how the element frame will be handled when the actual components of the telescope are being assembled.

Read more: NASA (external link)

04/08/2009: James Webb Space Telescope First Flight Mirror Completes Cryogenic Testing

The first mirror segment that will fly on the James Webb Space Telescope, built by Northrop Grumman Corporation, has completed its first series of cryogenic temperature tests in the X-ray and Cryogenic Facility at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Read more: NASA (external link)

02/09/2009: Webb Telescope Gets A Backbone

The Webb Space Telescope's spine, called the backplane, is now under construction. The backplane will support Webb's 21-foot-diameter (6.5 m) primary mirror as well as the telescope's array of instruments, for a total load of 7,500 pounds (3,401 kg). Made of aerospace composite materials, the backplane is designed to provide thermal stability at cryogenic temperatures below minus 400 Fahrenheit (-204 C). It will be completed by late 2010.

Read more: NASA (external link)

12/10/2008: Mirrors Chill Out at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center

The first of 18 mirror segments that will fly on NASA's James Webb Space Telescope arrived this week at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The mirrors will be chilled in a special vacuum chamber to prepare them to meet the extreme temperatures they will encounter in space.

Read more: NASA (external link)

09/17/2008: Mid-infrared Instrument Passes Tests

Development models for components of the Mid-Infrared Instrument on NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have passed a series of temperature and vibration tests. Now that engineers know the models could survive the ride to space, they have begun building parts of the instrument.

Read more: NASA (external link)

07/10/2008: NASA Approves Webb Telescope Project for Development and Launch

NASA has formally approved the JWST project to move into its implementation phase. This decision followed a successful Preliminary Design Review (PDR) in March 2008 and a Non-Advocate Review in April. While all the science instruments and the "long lead" items like the primary mirror segments are already being manufactured, this approval marks the transition of the program into "Phase C" (Final Design and Fabrication). Phase D covers system assembly, integration, and testing and launch. Since portions of this work occur while other subsystems are still in fabrication, NASA aficionados refer to this entire period as Phase C/D.

03/20/2008: Webb Sunshield Preliminary Design Review Complete

With the completion of the sunshield's preliminary design review, detailed engineering can move forward. Webb's sunshield is essential to the success of the telescope, protecting the telescope from heat that would interfere with the instruments.

Read more: NASA (external link)

07/16/2007: NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Reach Agreement on JWST

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) have reached an agreement on the agencies’ participation in the JWST mission. The CSA will develop and deliver the Webb Fine Guidance Sensors and provide functional support.

06/18/2007: ESA and NASA Sign Agreement on JWST

The European Space Agency and NASA signed the official agreements defining the terms of cooperation on the James Webb Space Telescope mission. NASA, responsible for the overall management and operations of Webb, will build the spacecraft, the telescope and the platform that holds the instruments. ESA will provide the launch with an Ariane 5 rocket. NASA will provide the NIRCam instrument, while ESA provides NIRSpec. The third instrument, MIRI, is being built by a consortium of European institutions and NASA/JPL.

Read more: European Space Agency News (external link)

07/18/2006: Northrop Grumman Demonstrates JWST Telescope Control System at Keck Observatory

The Northrop Grumman Corporation team developing JWST has successfully tested software that will be used to bring the space observatory's 18 mirror segments into alignment following launch. The test helps verify that the mirrors will produce clear images following the rough vibrations and disturbances during launch…

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

06/21/2006: Mirror Backplane Prototype Structure for James Webb Space Telescope Delivered for Testing at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

An important element of JWST, the Backplane Stability Test Article (BSTA), was delivered to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center for a series of rigorous tests designed to verify its readiness for use in space. The BSTA is a full-scale sub-section of the mirror's backplane, a structure that holds and supports the observatory's sensitive, lightweight mirrors and mirror controls…

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

05/15/2006: James Webb Space Telescope Sunshield Membrane Passes Critical Space-Readiness Tests

A Northrop Grumman Corp. team successfully completed a series of stringent tests that proved a key element of JWST can function successfully in its planned space environment. The tests were conducted on JWST's sunshield membrane, a five-layer structure approximately the size of a tennis court. The sunshield will block solar light and keep the observatory operating at cryogenic temperatures, enabling its infrared sensors to see distant galaxies, early stars, and planetary systems and help astronomers better understand dark matter.

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

03/28/2006: Northrop Grumman/NASA Team Wins NASA Award for Developing Cost-Effective Testing System for the James Webb Space Telescope

A joint Northrop Grumman Corporation/NASA team received an Exceptional Achievement Award from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center for developing a cost-effective system to test JWST. The team created an entirely new system for testing JWST's primary mirror optics in what may be the most complex cryogenic vacuum test ever, replacing a traditional approach in record time and cutting costs…

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

01/27/2006: System Definition Review (SDR)

JWST successfully passed the System Definition Review on Jan. 24–27. Two independent teams reviewed the overall quality and completeness of the system architecture, operational concepts, requirements, performance, and verification plan. Both teams were impressed with the overall quality of the work and indicated that the program was ready to move toward…

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10/06/2005: Mirror Segment for James Webb Space Telescope Delivered for Polishing

Manufacturing of JWST progressed further with the delivery of the telescope's first mirror segment for grinding and polishing. Tinsley Laboratories in Richmond, Calif., will perform high-precision grinding, polishing, and testing at ambient temperatures on the mirror segment. The mirrors will be polished to tolerances as tight as 20 nanometers, or less than one millionth of an inch…

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

08/01/2005: JWST Passes Review by Scientific Assessment Team

The Scientific Assessment Team (SAT) was chartered by NASA to look at the science priorities of JWST and its role in astronomy in the next decade. The SAT found that the scientific case for JWST is as strong or stronger than when initially conceived. The SAT recommended some streamlining in the telescope capabilities so as to focus on its unique infrared capabilities de-emphasazing optical and near-infrared wavelengths. The Science Working Group has endorsed the SAT recommendations and they have been adopted by the JWST project.

11/15/2004: Fabrication of James Webb Space Telescope Mirror Moves Forward; Northrop Grumman Teammate Axsys Technologies Opens New Facility

JWST moved a major step forward with the opening of a state-of-the-art facility in Cullman, Ala., that will machine the observatory's optical components…

Read more: Northrop-Grumman News Release (external link)

09/10/2003: NASA Approves James Webb Space Telescope Mirror Architecture

STScI-2003-27

NASA today announced a major milestone in the development of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the selection of a beryllium-based mirror technology for the telescope's 6.5-meter…

Read more in Hubblesite's Newscenter: NASA Approves James Webb Space Telescope Mirror Architecture

09/11/2002: NASA Announces Contract for Next-Generation Space Telescope Named After Space Pioneer

STScI-2002-20

NASA has selected TRW to build the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST), a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. This space-based observatory will be known as the James Webb Space…

Read more in Hubblesite's Newscenter: NASA Announces Contract for Next-Generation Space Telescope Named After Space Pioneer

06/08/1998: NASA Selects Home for Next Generation Space Telescope

STScI-1998-20

The duties of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Md., will be expanded to include the management of science operations for the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST), NASA…

Read more in Hubblesite's Newscenter: NASA Selects Home for Next Generation Space Telescope