James Webb telescope, successor of Hubble, set to make history

New York, Dec 25: The much-awaited James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), built by NASA at an astronomical cost of $10 billion, is set for launch today at 7.20am EST (5.50pm IST) from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.

An Ariane 5 rocket will lift off from Europe's Spaceport carrying NASA's next-generation space observatory. You can watch it live on NASA TV, as well as NASA's official channels. Live launch coverage in English will begin at 6 a.m. on NASA TV, the NASA app, and the agency's website. The public can also watch live on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Twitch, and Daily Motion.

According to NASA, the Web mission will explore every phase of cosmic history - from within the solar system to the most distant observable galaxies in the early universe, and everything in between. Webb will reveal new and unexpected discoveries and help humanity understand the origins of the universe and our place in it.

What is the James Webb Space Telescope?

James Webb Space Telescope is named after James Edwin Webb, the chief of the American space agency during most of the agency's formative decade of the 1960s. The telescope is set to replace Hubble Space Telescope as Nasa's flagship astrophysics mission.

The James Webb Space Telescope is a large infrared telescope with a 21.3 foot (6.5 meter) primary mirror. The observatory will study every phase of cosmic history-from within our solar system to the most distant observable galaxies in the early universe.