NASA Webb Space Telescope Segments Tested on Earth

Reliable communications with Webb in space is a critical priority for NASA. Similar tests

are part of an integrated regime,designed to test and ensure the operation of all observatory components in space with the complex communications networks involved in sending commands and transmitting scientific data. This test successfully demonstrated the complete continuum from the planning of scientific research that Webb will perform to the publication of scientific data in the community archive.

At the Webb Mission Control CenterTest operator Jessica Hart on a console at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, monitors the progress of the test using a social distancing protocol.

Credit: STSCI / Amanda Arway

“This is an important milestone for the project and it is great to see that Webb is performing as expected,” said Amanda Arway, deputy chief of mission operations at STScI in Maryland.

In this test, the commands for sequentialthe activation, movement and control of each of Webb's four science instruments were handed over from the Mission Operations Center. During the test, the observatory is viewed as if it were in orbit a million miles away. To do this, the mission control team connected the spacecraft to the Deep Space Network, an international array of giant radio antennas that NASA uses to communicate with many spacecraft. However, since Webb is not yet in space, special equipment was used to simulate the actual radio communications that would exist between Webb and the deep space network when in orbit. The commands were then transferred via the Deep Space Network emulator to the observatory, which is currently located in the Northrop Grumman cleanroom in Redondo Beach, California.

Now that the observatory is fully assembled, Webb's teams are conducting full tests at the observatory level to ensure it is ready for the harsh conditions of takeoff.

Credit: Northrop Grumman

Now that the observatory is fully assembled, Webb's teams are conducting full tests at the observatory level to ensure it is ready for the harsh conditions of takeoff.

To complete ground segment testing,a team of nearly 100 people worked together for four days straight. Due to staffing restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic, only seven people were present at the Mission Operations Center, with the rest working remotely to regularly monitor progress. 

Webb is the next great observatoryNASA space science program will help explore distant worlds around other stars and explore the mysterious structures and origins of our Universe. Webb is an international program led by NASA along with its partners the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency.

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