The James Webb Space Telescope has captured the “signature of water” and evidence of clouds and haze on a giant gas planet orbiting a distant sunlike star 1,150 light-years away.
The observation comes with the release of the first five full-color images from the telescope by NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency on Tuesday, hailed as the “deepest” and sharpest infrared images of the universe ever produced.
FIRST FULL-COLOR IMAGE FROM JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE REVEALED
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, Webb’s predecessor, was the first to capture the detection of water in 2013, though NASA said Webb’s observation was “more detailed” and “immediate.”
Clouds on another world. @NASAWebb captured the signature of water on giant gas planet WASP 96-b, which orbits a star 1,150 light-years away. For the first time, we’ve detected evidence of clouds in this exoplanet’s atmosphere: https://t.co/63zxpNDi4I #UnfoldTheUniverse pic.twitter.com/f3HOX0HKis
— NASA (@NASA) July 12, 2022
“Researchers will be able to use the spectrum to measure the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, constrain the abundance of various elements like carbon and oxygen, and estimate the temperature of the atmosphere with depth,” NASA said. “They can then use this information to make inferences about the overall make-up of the planet, as well as how, when, and where it formed.”
The first images centered on five cosmic targets, including the Carina Nebula, “the earliest, rapid phases of star formation that were previously hidden”; the Southern Ring Nebula, an expanding cloud of gas surrounding a dying star; Stephan’s Quintet, a galaxy cluster; the WASP-96b exoplanet, located 1,150 light-years from Earth; and SMACS 0723.
“Today, we present humanity with a groundbreaking new view of the cosmos from the James Webb Space Telescope — a view the world has never seen before,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Tuesday. “These images, including the deepest infrared view of our universe that has ever been taken, show us how Webb will help to uncover the answers to questions we don’t even yet know to ask; questions that will help us better understand our universe and humanity’s place within it.”
Take Five: Captured in exquisite detail, @NASAWebb peered through the thick dust of Stephan’s Quintet, a galaxy cluster showing huge shockwaves and tidal tails. This is a front-row seat to galactic evolution: https://t.co/63zxpNDi4I #UnfoldTheUniverse pic.twitter.com/em9wSJPkEU
— NASA (@NASA) July 12, 2022
On Monday, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled the first image captured by the telescope of “galaxy cluster SMACS 0723.”
Using infrared light, the telescope can see through cosmic dust, allowing scientists to see the first galaxies and stars to form in the universe. The telescope, developed by NASA and Northrop Grumman, is the largest and most powerful space telescope ever built, costing nearly $10 billion dollars and taking over 20 years to assemble. It was launched into space in December 2021 after a series of delays.
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Earlier this year, test images from the telescope, including its first “selfie” from space, were released while it was still in its commissioning phase, according to CNN.
