• Home
  • About
  • Contact us
Tech News, Magazine & Review WordPress Theme 2017
  • Computing
  • Entertainment
  • Gaming
  • Mobile
  • Science
  • Security
  • Services
  • Software
  • Space
No Result
View All Result
  • Computing
  • Entertainment
  • Gaming
  • Mobile
  • Science
  • Security
  • Services
  • Software
  • Space
Technovanguard — Be at the forefront of technology news
No Result
View All Result

Here’s Why Webb Doesn’t Have Cameras on Board to Livestream its Deployment

Justin Rowell by Justin Rowell
29.09.2022
Home Space

As the James Webb Space Telescope unfolds and makes its way to its final destination in space, NASA and ESA have done a great job of sharing the experience with the public. With webcasts, livestreams and a very active social media presence, the JWST team has allowed people to watch over the shoulders of engineers and scientists, as well as ask questions about the process of commissioning the new telescope.

The most often asked question on social media and at several press conferences seems to be, why weren’t cameras put on JWST to provide actual live footage from the telescope? Wouldn’t seeing it firsthand be better than just receiving telemetry?

Screenshot from NASA TV showing the Webb telescope after release from the rocket stage. Credit: NASA.

After all, rockets now routinely beam back live footage from space as they deploy satellites, (even JWST’s deploy was live),  the Perseverance rover had cameras that showed its descent to Mars surface, and the Chinese space agency has deployed remote “selfie cameras” to monitor its Mars rover and orbiter.

“No one would love more to see Webb doing its thing than us,” said Keith Parrish, Commissioning Manager for the Webb telescope, during a livestream on NASA TV during the final tensioning of the telescopes sunshield. “But Webb changes shape a lot, and we would need multiple cameras in multiple locations. The engineering usefulness of the cameras wasn’t there unless things got very complicated very fast. Plus, its very shiny on one side and very dark on the other — by design. The cameras wouldn’t see anything on the dark side.”

Because the same question keeps coming, NASA’s Webb team wrote a blog post about it, and the @NASAWebb twitter feed posted a thread on the topic.

“Adding cameras to watch an unprecedented, complicated deployment of such a precious spacecraft as Webb sounds like a no-brainer,” wrote Paul Geithner, Webb’s deputy project technical manager. “But in Webb’s case, there’s much more to it than meets the eye. It’s not as straightforward as adding a doorbell cam or even a rocket cam.”

Difficult lighting is one of the most obvious challenges. “Our gold-coated mirrors were photogenic on Earth, but the mirror side of Webb is pitch dark in space,” said Webb’s Twitter feed. “Meanwhile, the other, Sun-facing side of Webb is so shiny that cameras there would have glare & contrast issues.”

We’ve been hearing you loud and clear: Why doesn’t Webb have cameras for its journey to #UnfoldTheUniverse? It sounds like a no-brainer, but there’s more to it than meets the lens. Thread ?? pic.twitter.com/CrurG7OZgW

— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) January 6, 2022

Another reason is the extra engineering risk of the cameras needing extra power or causing interference with the telescope’s sensitive electronics. If engineers attached wiring harnesses to Webb in order to hold the cameras in place, they would cross moving parts of the telescope and run the risk of leaking heat or causing vibrations. Additionally, since the infrared detectors for Webb’s instruments need to be at temperatures near absolute zero to work properly, visible light cameras might not function at those temperatures. Any transfer of heat through wires could be an issue.

But what about remote cameras on cubesats? Mark McCaughrean, Senior Advisor for Science & Exploration at the European Space Agency and part of the JWST Science Working Group has been providing a wealth of details on Webb on his Twitter feed. He emphasized what a huge engineering challenge adding cubesats would be, especially since when Webb’s design was finalized, cubesats weren’t yet a viable option. “And how is that cubesat supposed to deploy, station keep, image, illuminate, relay back data, etc. all from 1 million km without adding more hardware, constraints, contamination and risk to JWST?”

And how is that cubesat supposed to deploy, station keep, image, illuminate, relay back data, etc. all from 1 million km without adding more hardware, constraints, contamination, & risk to JWST? Sure, it may be possible, but Twitter isn’t the place to do engineering.

— Mark McCaughrean (@markmccaughrean) January 5, 2022

Parrish said that engineers did actually try adding deployment cameras to full-scale mock-ups of Webb hardware at one point, but they found that the telescope’s comprehensive, built-in mechanical, thermal, and electrical sensors provided much better information on its status than cameras could.

“From an engineering perspective, the numbers tell us what is really happening,” he said. “We can take all the telemetry from all the sensors, and synthesize it into a visual for our teams. Maybe if we had started from day one with the concept of having cameras on board, we could have implemented that.”

But adding cameras in the middle of an already complicated an unprecedented design would have been complicated – and likely delayed – JWST even more.

The last time we saw JWST on Earth as it was packed inside the Ariane 5 rocket fairing. on December 17, 2021.

The post Here’s Why Webb Doesn’t Have Cameras on Board to Livestream its Deployment appeared first on Universe Today.


Next Post
Spotify targets advertisers with clickable ad card feature

Spotify targets advertisers with clickable ad card feature

Recommended.

How to Preserve Your Capital in a Tightened Regulatory Environment

How to Preserve Your Capital in a Tightened Regulatory Environment

01.02.2024
Tech Industry Faces Unprecedented Workforce Challenges as Layoffs Surpass 2022 Numbers

Tech Industry Faces Unprecedented Workforce Challenges as Layoffs Surpass 2022 Numbers

01.02.2024

Trending.

Google’s Financial Triumphs and Challenges: 100 Million Google One Subscribers, Cloud Profits, and Strategic Moves

Google’s Financial Triumphs and Challenges: 100 Million Google One Subscribers, Cloud Profits, and Strategic Moves

01.02.2024
Singtel Collaborates with Nvidia, Unveils Nxera for AI-Focused Datacenters Across Southeast Asia

Singtel Collaborates with Nvidia, Unveils Nxera for AI-Focused Datacenters Across Southeast Asia

01.02.2024
Technovanguard — Be at the forefront of technology news

Technovanguard - The latest news from the world of IT and modern technologies.

Categories

  • Computing
  • Entertainment
  • Gaming
  • Internet
  • Mobile
  • News
  • Science
  • Security
  • Services
  • Software
  • Space
  • Без рубрики

Tags

best bitcoin casino best bitcoin gambling site best crypto casino bitcoin gambling site btc casino cloud services digital services FEATUREDNEWS IT linkedin connection message linkedin connection request template linkedin connect message examples linkedin networking message template linkedin sales message Recommended top bitcoin casinos Trending

Recent News

Residential homes made of foam

Prejudice to Foam and Its Impact on People’s Lives

02.04.2025

Using the Digital Shift to your Advantage: Key Ideas Companies Should Know to Not Miss Their Chance

16.05.2025
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact us

© 2021 technovanguard.com. Submit news release

No Result
View All Result
  • Computing
  • Entertainment
  • Gaming
  • Mobile
  • Science
  • Security
  • Services
  • Software
  • Space

© 2021 technovanguard.com. Submit news release