大象传媒

The James Webb Space Telescope, currently on route to see the first galaxies and distant worlds after its launch on Christmas Day, has already passed beyond the moon's orbit.

Its controllers here on Earth are monitoring the telescope as "origami-like" it begins the process of unfolding its cobweb-thin sun shield in a series of high-stakes technical manoeuvres.

The telescope will fire more than a hundred release mechanisms to deploy the kite shaped heat shield.
Dr. Carly Howett - a Professor of Space Instrumentation at the University of Oxford - told Newsday it really has to work first time so it's going to be "an exciting few days."

"One of the riskiest things that the James Webb telescope has do is the unfurling of this enormous sunshade that is absolutely critical to the success of the mission."

"But it's very complicated."

"It's going to keep all the detectors and mirrors nice and cold away from the sun so they can operate."

(Pic: The JWST's sunshade is wrapped in a silvery cover; Credit: Nasa)

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