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Assembling a Space Mirror

I have been remiss in not blogging about this sooner – but it’s been incredibly busy around here at “JWST Central.” That is to say, we’ve been hard at work, here at NASA Goddard putting together the actual James Webb Space Telescope.

Back in August, we had the giant telescope structure delivered in a big white packing case from Northrop Grumman. It had journeyed to Goddard via truck and C-5 airplane.

JWST Telescope Structure

Image credit: NASA Goddard/Chris Gunn

Pretty impressive, no? I’m actually in the below shot, in the blue shirt, right behind it. I did a lot of hanging out over there while all this excitement was going on.

JWST Telescope Structure

Hi Mom! Image credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

It was pretty amazing to see this thing upright and close to the window. You really got a sense of its scale. It’s huge. Here the back of the structure is facing us and you can see the latticed box that the instrument module will go inside of. The mirrors go on the other side. Here the side “wings” are folded back (as they will be for launch), and the secondary mirror boom is also all folded up.

JWST Telescope Structure

I had to take a panorama to fit the whole thing in one shot! Credit: Maggie Masetti

Here’s one more to prove I was there. ;-)

JWST Telescope Structure

Not a selfie! Credit: Maggie Masetti

Next came deployments of each wing, both of which I was lucky enough to catch:

When the time came to move the whole thing to the big assembly structure in the cleanroom, it was with both wings deployed.

Here’s a view from the “Webbcam,” of the telescope structure, wings deployed. (Yes, we have a “Webbcam” – where you can watch what is going on in the cleanroom! Check it out here.)

JWST Telescope Structure

JWST Webbcam view. Credit: NASA

JWST Telescope Structure

JWST Webbcam view. Credit: NASA

And then the lift to the assembly stand.

Telescope Structure Lift

JWST WebbCam, Credit: NASA

Telescope Structure Lift

Credit: Maggie Masetti

Telescope Structure Lift

Credit: Maggie Masetti

And from the Webbcam:

JWST in the Assembly Stand

JWST Webbcam, Credit: NASA

Pretty soon the first flight mirror segment was mounted onto the robotic arm and prepped for installation.

Here’s a little trailer our videographer Mike McClare made, which I think helps to convey the excitement we all felt about beginning this process:

James Webb Space Telescope Mirror Mounted on the Robotic Arm

Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

Then the mirror was installed! Each mirror has a protective cover on it – but those covers don’t actually touch the surface of the mirror. Also you’ll notice there are silver things on the sides of the mirror – those are used in conjunction with lasers to precisely lay the segments on the telescope structure.

First Mirror Installation

Image credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

First Mirror Installation

Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

First Mirror Installation

Image credit: NASA/Chris Gunn

A feature on the first installation:

As of this writing, four of JWST’s primary mirror segments have been successfully installed and they are working on installing the fifth.

Mirror Scoreboard

Credit: NASA

You can stay up to date on the latest developments by following JWST on social media. We’re using #MirrorSeason for updates on mirror installation and on the scoreboard. You can also find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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