As the Webb team wraps up the final tests for commissioning this week, we are now only days away from the public release of the first images and spectra on July 12! This also means that Webb is moving into the phase of full science operations that includes a highly impressive suite of science programs from the solar system to the distant universe. The entire Webb team is ready to celebrate the long journey to this point and embark on the next few decades of groundbreaking infrared astronomy.
Thanks for that link. I have been eagerly awaiting the first images from Webb ever since they were announced, but didn't know when or where to look for them yet. I will definitely be checking them...
Thanks for that link. I have been eagerly awaiting the first images from Webb ever since they were announced, but didn't know when or where to look for them yet. I will definitely be checking them out on the 12th now! :)
What constantly blows my mind is that basically all of Star Trek — all those alien races, spatial anomalies, and strange new worlds — occurs within one galaxy. Which, as these deep field images...
What constantly blows my mind is that basically all of Star Trek — all those alien races, spatial anomalies, and strange new worlds — occurs within one galaxy. Which, as these deep field images keep showing us, is a teeny tiny thing in the enormity of the universe.
Even Kirk could never dream of traveling to any of these places.
NASA’s press conference where Biden is set to reveal the first photos should be starting any minute now, for those who want to watch along: NASA Live: Official Stream of NASA TV Edit: It’s had...
NASA’s press conference where Biden is set to reveal the first photos should be starting any minute now, for those who want to watch along: NASA Live: Official Stream of NASA TV
Edit: It’s had “Will begin momentarily” on screen for the past half hour. :( I will reply to this comment when it actually starts.
Ah that explains a lot. There is actually just as much lensing going on in the original Hubble version of the same shot, but it's just a bit harder to notice. Thanks for sharing all that info. cc:...
Ah that explains a lot. There is actually just as much lensing going on in the original Hubble version of the same shot, but it's just a bit harder to notice. Thanks for sharing all that info. cc: @Amarok, @balooga
Yeah, the new clarity and level of detail is so much better. Going back and forth between them shows so many new galaxies too. It's breathtaking, humbling, and genuinely gave me goosebumps.
Yeah, the new clarity and level of detail is so much better. Going back and forth between them shows so many new galaxies too. It's breathtaking, humbling, and genuinely gave me goosebumps.
Yeah, I was just comparing it to the Ultra Deep Field and it's very apparent. I'm too much of a layperson to recognize what's happening here but I am going to be gobbling up every explainer video...
Yeah, I was just comparing it to the Ultra Deep Field and it's very apparent. I'm too much of a layperson to recognize what's happening here but I am going to be gobbling up every explainer video I can find in the next few days!
Total speculation, but they may not have had enough time to fully process the image yet to reduce some of the distortion, like they might have done with previous deep field images(?). But it could...
Total speculation, but they may not have had enough time to fully process the image yet to reduce some of the distortion, like they might have done with previous deep field images(?). But it could also be that the area they decided to capture first has a particularly strong gravity field somewhere in between Webb and many of the other galaxies in the image (notice how the lensing effect seems to be revolving around the one white galaxy in the very centre of the image, slightly below the biggest blue-white one). And it could also be that when zooming in that much, more lensing is just par for the course since we’re focusing on such a tiny sliver of the sky.
I too am looking forward to hearing from people smarter than me in the coming days/weeks enlightening me on what caused this issue though.
I very much doubt it's a coincidence. They were probably looking at Hubble images when they decided what photos to take first. And gravitational lensing is a good way to see the early universe.
I very much doubt it's a coincidence. They were probably looking at Hubble images when they decided what photos to take first. And gravitational lensing is a good way to see the early universe.
How to see Webb's first images
Thanks for that link. I have been eagerly awaiting the first images from Webb ever since they were announced, but didn't know when or where to look for them yet. I will definitely be checking them out on the 12th now! :)
p.s. Countdown timer site, HYPE!!!!
Finally some new wallpapers for modern HiDPI screens :)
These photos are stunning and leave me with so many questions. Incredible.
I live in constant regret that I don't live in a Star Trek era when we can visit all these worlds FTL.
What constantly blows my mind is that basically all of Star Trek — all those alien races, spatial anomalies, and strange new worlds — occurs within one galaxy. Which, as these deep field images keep showing us, is a teeny tiny thing in the enormity of the universe.
Even Kirk could never dream of traveling to any of these places.
NASA’s press conference where Biden is set to reveal the first photos should be starting any minute now, for those who want to watch along:
NASA Live: Official Stream of NASA TV
Edit: It’s had “Will begin momentarily” on screen for the past half hour. :( I will reply to this comment when it actually starts.
It’s actually started now.
Edit: Well that was weirdly short.
Link to the image, Webb’s First Deep Field:
https://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages
Fucking crazy.
Ah that explains a lot. There is actually just as much lensing going on in the original Hubble version of the same shot, but it's just a bit harder to notice. Thanks for sharing all that info. cc: @Amarok, @balooga
Stark contrast when viewing them side by side. Webb makes it really pop, and the lensing just leaps out. Hubble's image is so much fainter.
Yeah, the new clarity and level of detail is so much better. Going back and forth between them shows so many new galaxies too. It's breathtaking, humbling, and genuinely gave me goosebumps.
Is it just me, or is there a lot more lensing in that picture than we normally see in deep field images?
Yeah, I was just comparing it to the Ultra Deep Field and it's very apparent. I'm too much of a layperson to recognize what's happening here but I am going to be gobbling up every explainer video I can find in the next few days!
Total speculation, but they may not have had enough time to fully process the image yet to reduce some of the distortion, like they might have done with previous deep field images(?). But it could also be that the area they decided to capture first has a particularly strong gravity field somewhere in between Webb and many of the other galaxies in the image (notice how the lensing effect seems to be revolving around the one white galaxy in the very centre of the image, slightly below the biggest blue-white one). And it could also be that when zooming in that much, more lensing is just par for the course since we’re focusing on such a tiny sliver of the sky.
I too am looking forward to hearing from people smarter than me in the coming days/weeks enlightening me on what caused this issue though.
I very much doubt it's a coincidence. They were probably looking at Hubble images when they decided what photos to take first. And gravitational lensing is a good way to see the early universe.