The famous Pillars of Creation, as seen by JWST
NASA, ESA, CSA STSCI
Astronomers began 2022 waiting with bated breath for the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). It arrived at its orbital parking spot in January, then aligned its mirrors and tested its cameras.
There were 344 “single-point failures” – elements of the launch and deployment of the telescope that would have been catastrophic if they went wrong – and not a single one proved to be a problem.
NASA released the telescope’s first fantastic images in July, showing the Carina …