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The Next Space Telescope Will Peer Deep Into The Universe. Scientists Can't Wait To See What It Sees.

The flight mirrors for the James Webb Space Telescope undergo cryogenic testing at NASA Marshall. Photo: Ball Aerospace
The flight mirrors for the James Webb Space Telescope undergo cryogenic testing at NASA Marshall. Photo: Ball Aerospace

The next space-based telescope is almost ready to head into orbit. The James Webb Space Telescope aims to look deeper into the history of the universe, piggy-backing off the incredible observations of the Hubble Space Telescope.

It’s undergoing final tests before getting packed away for shipment to French Guiana, ahead of a launch currently slated for Halloween.

The massive telescope made with 18 mirrors and a sun shield the size of a tennis court will peer deeper into space than ever before, capturing photons in the infrared from the dawn of our universe.

We’ll speak with NASA’s Lee Feinberg, Optical Telescope Element Manager, about the mirrors and this last leg of testing before launching later this year.

Then, we’ll speak with our panel of University of Central Florida physicists about this next step in space-based observations and what’s ahead for the science community once it launches.

Brendan covers space news for WMFE, everything from rocket launches to the latest scientific discoveries in our universe. He hosts WMFE's weekly radio show and podcast "Are We There Yet?" which explores human space exploration. Brendan is a native Floridian, born and raised in Broward County. He moved to Central Florida in 2005 to attend the University of Central Florida. He began working at WMFE as a college intern where he discovered his love for public radio.