The Moon might be James Webb Space Telescope's next biggest launch obstacle: NASA

wait to see James Webb Telescope blaze out into has been extended furr as NASA anunced on Wednesday, December 15, that its launch has been delayed to December 24. According to NASA, it was forced to postpone liftoff from December 22 after telescope suffered a communication snag with its launch vehicle, Ariane 5 rocket. Webb is currently sitting atop rocket at its launch site on French Guiana while scientists have ir fingers crossed for coming days. 

Webb's days ahe might get rough

According to Karen Richon, a flight-dynamics engineer at NASA’s Goddard Flight Center, Webb telescope might have moon as its next biggest obstacle. In an interview with Atlantic, she explained that if any technical failure pushes launch beyond December, Earth's satellite might thwart mission with its gravitational influence. Scientists have alrey decided a certain trajectory to install telescope into its orbit and if Moon comes between that path, its gravity can nudge former into a completely different route. “It eir pulls us back because it wants to try to capture us into orbit, or it gives some acceleration,” Richon told Atlantic.

However, in Webb's case, neir a pull will be an vant r a push. Rar, this lunar influence can completely jeopardise  mission. If Moon's tugs Webb towards it, telescope will have to expend its fuel to stay in its path, which would significantly reduce its operational lifespan, while on or hand, a push would kck it off its original trajectory and leave it being more than a multi-billion dollar junk. According to Richon, if telescope fails to launch by December end,  launch window will be closed sometime between January 9 and 13. In dition to Moon, scientists will also have to take into consideration gravitational influence of planets in order to save telescope which took 30 years to be fully developed.

Scientists hopeful for a December 24 launch

For those catching up, James Webb Telescope is being delayed for nearly a dece. National Aeronautics and ministration (NASA) planned to launch telescope back in 2011. As mentioned earlier, telescope is currently in French Guiana, where it arrived back in October from California. Once James Webb Telescope takes off, it will be placed nearly 1.5 million kilometres away from Earth.

Im: Twitter/@ESA