NASA has unveiled the first batch of full-color images that the James Webb Space Telescope has sent back to Earth. NASA, the European Space Agency, Canadian Space Agency and the Space Telescope Science Institute determined the initial targets to show off the JWST’s capabilities. They include the Carina Nebula, Southern Ring, SMACS 0723, WASP-96b and Stephan’s Quintet.
The first image revealed today was of the Southern Ring nebula, which was captured by JWST’s NIRCam and MIRI instruments. NASA says the telescope was able to observe gas and dust from a dying star in “unprecedented detail” — far more than what Hubble was able to capture in 1998.
Along with the images, NASA revealed spectroscopic data that JWST captured from WASP-96b to show the atmospheric composition of the gas exoplanet, which is around 1,150 light years away. NASA says it’s the most detailed exoplanet spectrum captured to date and that Webb detected “the unambiguous signature of water,” well as indications of haze and clouds, which were previously not believed to exist on WASP-96b.
The very first full-color image from JWST, which was revealed by the White House on Monday, showed a cluster of galaxies, SMACS 0723, as it appeared 4.6 billion years ago. The astonishingly vivid image of thousands of galaxies was just an appetizer.
This is a big moment in advancing our understanding of the universe, as it marks the official beginning of the JWST’s general science operations. The images indicate the JWST is working as intended, which should mean we’ll gain much more insight into the cosmos in the coming years. JWST is expected to be in operation for at least five years, though NASA believes the observatory has enough propellant to support scientific work for over a decade.
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