NGC’s James Webb Telescope Reaches Milestone (Photos)
Northrop Grumman’s (NYSE: NOC) James Webb Space Telescope reached a mission-readiness milestone when its first primary mirror segment was cryo-polished to its required prescription as measured at operational cryogenic temperatures. This achievement sets the stage for a successful polishing process for the remaining 18 flight mirror segments.
“Many predicted it would take us multiple iterations to successfully polish these mirror segments to achieve the correct optical prescription at the telescope’s operating temperatures, but we did it on our first try,” said Scott Willoughby, Webb Telescope Program Manager for Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems. “All our budgets and schedules are based on this and it’s a confirmation of the basic plan we proposed ten years ago.”
The Webb Telescope's mirror segments prepared to move.
The Webb Telescope one step closer to completion
GovConWire reserves the right to remove any and all comments that do not comply with the comment guidelines contained below. These include comments that are spam and/or use profanity, make personal attacks, or contain other inappropriate comments or material, including libelous or offensive statements.