Launch of Nasa's new space telescope delayed until Christmas Day
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FRENCH GUIANA (REUTERS) - Lift-off of the James Webb Space Telescope, designed to peer farther than ever into the universe, has been delayed until Christmas Day at the earliest, due to poor weather at the launch site on South America's north-eastern coast, the space agency said on Tuesday (Dec 21).
The 24-hour weather delay at the Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana follows a two-day postponement from an earlier Dec 22 targeted launch window caused by electronic communications difficulties between the launch vehicle and its payload, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa).
Encapsulation of the powerful infrared telescope inside the cargo bay of an Ariane 5 rocket was completed on Dec 17. The rocket is now poised for blast-off around 7.20am EST (8.20pm, Singapore time) on Saturday.
If all goes according to plan, the US$9 billion (S$12 billion) instrument will be released from the rocket after a 26-minute ride into space.
Named after Nasa's chief during most of the 1960s, the new telescope is about 100 times more sensitive than its 30-year-old predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope.
It is expected to revolutionise astronomers' understanding of the universe and humans' place in it.
The telescope is an international collaboration led by Nasa in partnership with the European and Canadian space agencies.
Northrop Grumman was the primary contractor. The Ariane launch vehicle is part of the European contribution.
