NASA Sets December 18 Launch Date For James Webb Space Telescope

The United States plans to launch the James Webb Space Telescope on December 18 from French Guiana on an Ariane rocket supplied by the European Space Agency, NASA said on Wednesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 08th September, 2021) The United States plans to launch the James Webb Space Telescope on December 18 from French Guiana on an Ariane rocket supplied by the European Space Agency, NASA said on Wednesday.

"The agency set the new target launch date in coordination with Arianespace after Webb recently and successfully completed its rigorous testing regimen - a major turning point for the mission," NASA said in a press release.

The new date also follows Arianespace successfully launching an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe's Spaceport on the northeastern coast of South America in July - the first for an Ariane 5 since August 2020, the release said.

NASA is currently packing the telescope in California for shipment to the Ariane launch site, the release added.

Unlike its predecessor, the Earth-orbiting Hubble telescope, the Webb observatory will orbit the sun about a million miles from Earth. From that position, the telescope will be able to explore every phase of cosmic history - from within our solar system to the most distant galaxies in the early universe, according to NASA.