Go to the 1:28 mark for the final countdown of the FSB-2 test. Turn the volume up. FSB-2 is an upgraded version of FSB-1, which in turn is an upgraded version of the original STS solid rocket booster. FSB-1 and -2 are designed to be strap-ons for Artemis with -2 targeted for later missions. Have a blast watching the video … literally.
I couldn’t remember how many commas are in the mileage conversion to light years, so Google. The more we learn about what this telescope can show us, the more impossible to form some perspective–at least for me. I just can’t get enough of this.
That single machine is going to (or should) change how humanity views itself. Maybe some of the trite bickering and political genocide will stop. Maybe.
I am glad all of this space exploration happened in my lifetime.
I did not realize how big or how heavy this telescope actually is. What an achievement.
See the MIRI image at the lower right of the webpage for a fantastic contrast between what NIRCam sees and what MIRI sees in the mid-IR. I love the Cartwheel because of the unusual ring of intense new star formation at the end of the spiral arms. There is clearly fresh interstellar material surrounding the Cartwheel that is being compressed into initiating star formation.