Re:James Webb is fully deployed
by micromacrofoot on Saturday January 08, 2022 @08:27PM
(#29858801)
Not really… these telescopes aren’t like snapping a photo, they take long exposures. The famous hubble deep field image was a 20+ day exposure time spread out over months (due to orbits, etc).
Trying to get an image out of it too early would just be a mess, it’s kind of an all or nothing affair. The sensor needs to be at the right temperature and the mirrors need to be precisely aligned. It’s all built to be outrageously sensitive so it can operate at the level it’s meant to.
Also, each image it’s scheduled to take has been submitted years in advance.
Trying to get an image out of it too early would just be a mess, it’s kind of an all or nothing affair. The sensor needs to be at the right temperature and the mirrors need to be precisely aligned. It’s all built to be outrageously sensitive so it can operate at the level it’s meant to.
Also, each image it’s scheduled to take has been submitted years in advance.