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Technicians successfully test James Webb Space Telescope’s Deployable Tower Assembly.
This tower creates a 4-foot (1.2 meter) gap between Webb’s mirror and science segment and it’s sunshield and spacecraft bus segment.
This gap allows Webb’s active and passive cooling systems to cool its mirrors and sensors down to super cold temperatures.
Mirrors and instruments need to be super cold for Webb to perform its science.
A special pulley and counterbalance system perfectly offset the weight of Webb’s mirrors and instrument segment
Canceling the effects of Earth’s gravity for this test. The tower slowly extended upward over the course of several hours.
This is the same maneuver it will perform once in space. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope will be the world’s premier space science observatory when it launches.
Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.
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