Tests under way on the sunshield for NASA's Webb Telescope
Monday, September 19, 2011 - 12:30
in Astronomy & Space
NASA is testing an element of the sunshield that will protect the James Webb Space Telescope's mirrors and instruments during its mission to observe the most distant objects in the universe. The sunshield will consist of five tennis court-sized layers to allow the Webb telescope to cool to its cryogenic operating temperature of minus 387.7 degrees Fahrenheit (40 Kelvin).