Webb Telescope Fact Sheet

The James Webb Space Telescope aims to unlock the early Universe. NASA’s next space telescope, known as Webb, will capture infrared light from some of the rst stars and galaxies, which have never been seen before. From its orbit 1.5 million kilometres from Earth, the observatory will also peer at the atmospheres of planets orbiting other stars, looking for hints of life.

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NASAfactsThe James Webb Space Telescope’s revolutionary technology will 
study every phase of cosmic history—from within our solar system  
to the most distant observable galaxies in the early universe.  
Webb’s infrared telescope will explore a wide range of science  
questions to help us understand the origins of the universe  
and our place in it. 
Seeking Light from the First
Galaxies in the Universe
Webb will directly observe a part of space and time never seen 
before. Webb will gaze into the epoch when the very first stars and 
galaxies formed, over 13.5 billion years ago. Ultraviolet and visible 
light emitted by the very first luminous objects has been stretched  
or “redshifted” by the universe’s continual expansion and arrives 
today as infrared light. Webb is designed to “see” this infrared light 
with unprecedented resolution and sensitivity. 
Exploring Distant Worlds
and the Solar System
Webb will also be a powerful tool for studying the nearby universe. 
Scientists will use Webb to study planets and other bodies in our 
solar system to determine their origin and evolution and compare 
them with exoplanets, planets that orbit other stars. Webb will 
also observe exoplanets located in their stars’ habitable zones, the 
regions where a planet could harbor liquid water on its surface, and 
can determine if and where signatures of habitability may be present. 
Using a technique called transmission spectroscopy, the observatory 
will examine starlight filtered through planetary atmospheres to 
learn about their chemical compositions.
www.nasa.gov
Quick Facts
PRIMARY MIRROR SIZE: 21.3 feet  
 (6.5 meters) across
MIRROR SHAPE: The mirror is comprised  
of 18 gold-plated hexagonal deployable  
segments
SUNSHIELD: Webb’s five-layer deployable 
sunshield is the size of a tennis court
INSTRUMENTS: Webb has four science  
 instruments: Near-Infrared Camera  
(NIRCam), Near-Infrared Spectrograph  
(NIRSpec), Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI),  
and Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless  
Spectrograph (NIRISS) with the Fine  
Guidance Sensor (FGS)
WAVELENGTHS: Visible, Near Infrared,  
Mid Infrared (0.6-28.5 micrometers)
TRAVEL DISTANCE: 1 million miles  
(1.5 million kilometers) from Earth
LOCATION IN SPACE: Orbiting the Sun  
around the second Lagrange point (L2)
WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE
Observatory
Webb is NASA’s largest and most powerful space science telescope 
ever constructed. Webb’s enormous size and frigid operating  
temperature present extraordinary engineering challenges. After 
launching from French Guiana, the observatory will travel to an orbit 
about one million miles away from Earth and undergo six months of 
commissioning in space—unfolding its mirrors, sunshield, and other 
smaller systems; cooling down; aligning; and calibrating. Astrono-
mers worldwide will then be able to conduct scientific observations 
to broaden our understanding of the universe. Webb will also comple-
ment the science achieved by other NASA missions. 
Partners
Webb is an international collaboration between NASA and its partners,  
ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency. 
Thousands of engineers and hundreds of scientists worked to make 
Webb a reality, along with over 300 universities, organizations, and 
companies from 29 U.S. states and 14 countries.
For more information, visit: www.nasa.gov/webb