NASA will deliver the most powerful telescope ever into orbit in December. The James Webb Space Telescope will be able to examine planets outside the solar system in unprecedented detail. These tests include checking if their atmospheres show any signs of life as we know it.
Of all, finding life beyond Earth is challenging. This telescope will not be able to provide definitive proof that another life exists outside the galaxy. However, some experts believe that this telescope could detect signs of life on Earth-sized planets that have so far eluded thorough examination in just three days. The researcher reported the study findings at the American Physical Society April 2021 Meeting.
James Webb Space Telescope Can See Exoplanets as Little as Three Days
According to Study Finds, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) can see exoplanets light-years away from Earth in as little as 60 hours, or almost three days.
Caprice Phillips, a graduate student at The Ohio State University and the study's author, said in a statement that astronauts might feasibly uncover indications of life on other planets in the next five to ten years with JWST's speed.
It will orbit six exoplanets, including K2-18B, a dwarf planet. These gaseous planets are bigger than Earth, yet they might potentially support life. Water and life-sustaining temperatures have been found in K2-18B in particular.
Dwarf planets made of gas have the potential to support life. However, because none of these super-Earths or mini-Neptunes exist in our solar system, scientists are unsure if their atmospheres contain ammonia or other indicators of life.
Phillips projected that after just a few orbits, the James Webb Space Telescope may find ammonia near six gas dwarf planets.
She and her colleagues created a sorted list of where the JWST should look for life after modeling how the equipment would react to different clouds and atmospheric conditions.
About James Webb Telescope
The telescope's highly anticipated launch date is now planned for Dec. 18, 2021. Mashable said it has been in the news recently for reasons unrelated to its scientific mission. The extraordinary equipment was named after NASA's chief in the 1960s, James Webb, who managed the agency when the federal government harassed and dismissed LGBTQ individuals from NASA and other departments. For the time being, NASA has decided to preserve the JWST name after discovering no evidence that "warrants altering the designation" concerning Webb.
In the 1990s, JWST was nicknamed the "Next Generation Orbit Telescope," and it will join the Hubble Space Telescope in recording clear images of the cosmos from space. Hubble is a marvel of science. Hubble has revealed unparalleled, dazzling vistas of the universe, galaxies, and planets over its three decades orbiting 340 miles above Earth. However, JWST is not a substitute for Hubble, which is nearing the end of its useful life. JWST is a descendant with new and improved skills.
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