The James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST, has the largest mirror we’ve ever sent into space, spanning more than 21 feet across. Made of gold-plated beryllium, the mirror is designed to gather infrared light – a type of light invisible to the human eye that can travel incredibly long distances across the Universe. Equipped with this impressive mirror, JWST should be able to peer into the deepest recesses of the universe, collecting light from the first stars and galaxies that formed immediately after the Big Bang. It’s been a particularly long road to get to this point However, it has been a long road to get to this point. JWST has been in development for the past two and a half decades, with its journey constantly beset by delays. Its budget has also soared to nearly $10 billion, and controversy has swirled around its namesake. But finally, on Christmas Day 2021, the telescope launched intact and as planned. Over the past six months, scientists and engineers have meticulously developed, aligned and calibrated the telescope, preparing it to unveil the first stunning images taken by the telescope. Now, JWST is about to begin its first year of studying the universe, which is packed with observations from scientists around the world who want to study distant star formations, galaxies, exoplanets and more. These photos are just the beginning and just a teaser of the exciting images yet to come.
What time will NASA release the JWST images?
Things kick off this afternoon at the White House. For weeks now, NASA had planned to release the images all together on the morning of July 12, but over the weekend, the agency surprised everyone by adding a last-minute update to the White House on July 11 at 5 p.m. ET. Now, President Joe Biden will unveil one of the images first thing this afternoon, with NASA Administrator Bill Nelson delivering remarks. Scheduled time: New York: 5 p.m. / San Francisco: 2pm / London: 10pm / Berlin: 11pm / Moscow: 12am / New Delhi: 2:30 AM / Beijing: 5 am / Tokyo: 6am / Melbourne: 7am
What about the rest of the images?
NASA has scheduled a series of updates on July 12 to present the remaining images. First, at 9:45 am. ET, there will be opening remarks from NASA leadership and the JWST team. Then at 10:30 a.m. ET, NASA should unveil the remaining images during a live broadcast, followed by a media press conference at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center at 12:30 p.m. ET. It’s going to be a day full of content, but if you just want to see the rest of the images, it’s time to tune in at 10:30am. ET. Scheduled Time: New York: 10:30am / San Francisco: 7:30am / London: 3:30 p.m. / Berlin: 4:30 p.m. / Moscow: 5:30 p.m. / New Delhi: 20:00 / Beijing: 22:30 / Tokyo: 23:30 / Melbourne: 12:30 am
How can I track the release of the image?
NASA will provide live streaming coverage on its dedicated channels, including NASA TV, which can be found on YouTube and the NASA website. The release will also be streamed on the NASA app as well as NASA’s social channels on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Twitch and Dailymotion.
Where can I catch the JWST journey?
We’ve been covering the JWST launch for years. Check out some of our previous coverage below:
