Canada helps NASA launch Webb, the largest space telescope in history

NASA, in partnership with the European and Canadian Space Agency (CSA), will launch the James Webb Space Telescope, which is 100 times more powerful than the Hubble telescope and will be the largest space telescope in history.

According to NASA, thanks to the next generation of space telescopes, Webb is set to become the premier space observatory for astronomers around the world.

Webb is expected to launch on December 21, 2021, the first day of winter.

NASA doesn’t call Webb a successor to the Hubble telescope, but rather an extension of what it has accomplished.

As Hubble orbits Earth 570 km above our planet, Webb will be sitting at Earth-Sun L2 Lagrange point 1.5 million km away.

According to NASA, “Webb will reveal new and unexpected discoveries and help humanity understand the origins of the universe and our place in it.”

Building the telescope was a huge undertaking.

NASA/Kris Jane

“Webb is an exemplary mission that exemplifies the example of perseverance,” Gregory L. Robinson, Webb program manager at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said in a statement.

The Canadian Space Agency has provided a scientific instrument and an orientation sensor, and Canadian scientists will take part in missions related to Webb once it is activated.

Webb, the man, was a US government official and the second appointed director of NASA in the 1960s.

Webb will be launched from the European Spaceport in French Guiana.