James Webb Space Telescope comes together

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49504866

James Webb Space Telescope comes together

By Jonathan Amos
BBC Science Correspondent

28 August 2019

The successor to the Hubble observatory has reached a key milestone in its construction. All the elements that make up the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have been brought together for the first time. It sets the stage for some critical tests that will hopefully lead to a launch to orbit sometime in 2021.

JWST will use a colossal mirror and state-of-the-art instruments to try to see the glow from the very first stars to shine in the Universe. It will also have the power to resolve the atmospheres of many of the new planets now being discovered beyond our Solar System, and to analyse their atmospheres for the potential for life.

The telescope is a joint endeavour of the American (Nasa), European (Esa) and Canadian (CSA) space agencies.

It can be thought of as having three main parts - a telescope (mirrors and instruments); a big sunshield to shade its sensitive view of the sky; and a spacecraft unit that will manage the observatory's day-to-day operations in orbit. These three segments have finally been bolted together at a Los Angeles factory facility belonging to the prime contractor, Northrop Grumman.
(snip)