JWST's Sunshield Full Deploy Test Time Lapse

  • Released Friday, February 13th, 2015
  • Updated Wednesday, May 3rd, 2023 at 1:49PM
  • ID: 11769

A major test of the sunshield for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope was conducted in July 2014 by Northrop Grumman in Redondo Beach, Calif. For the first time, the five sunshield test layers were unfolded and separated; unveiling important insights for the engineers and technicians as to how the deployment will take place when the telescope launches into space.

The sunshield will allow the telescope to cool down to a temperature below 50 Kelvin (equal to -370 degree F, or -223 degree C) by passively radiating its heat into space.

JWST's Sunshield Full Deploy Test Time Lapse

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NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

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