Initial tests of the Telescope’s instruments showed it is capable of capturing crisp, well-focused images with each of its four onboard science instruments.
It is now ready to move forward into its next and final series of preparations, known as science instrument commissioning. This process will take about two months and will allow scientific operations to begin.
“These remarkable test images from a successfully aligned telescope demonstrate what people across countries and continents can achieve when there is a bold scientific vision to explore the universe,” said Lee Feinberg, Webb optical telescope element manager at Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
The engineering team said the optical performance of the telescope is superior to its most optimistic predictions.
The image quality delivered to all instruments is “diffraction-limited,” meaning that the fineness of detail that can be seen is as good as physically possible given the size of the telescope...