NASA targets 2021 Halloween for James Webb telescope launch after delay due to COVID-19

National Aeronautics Space Agency (NASA) on July 16 announced a new launch date for James Webb Space Telescope due to impacts from the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as technical challenges. According to NASA, the agency is now targeting October 31, 2021, as the new date for the launch, which was earlier scheduled for March next year. The launch of the James Webb Space Telescope will take place from French Guiana, which is situated on the northeast coast of South America. 

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"The perseverance and innovation of the entire Webb Telescope team have enabled us to work through challenging situations we could not have foreseen on our path to launch this unprecedented mission. Webb is the world’s most complex space observatory and our top science priority, and we’ve worked hard to keep progress moving during the pandemic. The team continues to be focused on reaching milestones and arriving at the technical solutions that will see us through to this new launch date next year," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. 

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NASA had earlier planned to assess the progress of the project in April after schedule margins grew tighter last fall. However, the agency had to postpone the assessment in April due to the pandemic and was only completed this week. The factors contributing to the decision to move the launch date include the impacts of augmented safety precautions, reduced on-site personnel, disruption to shift work, and other technical challenges. Webb will use existing program funding to stay within its $8.8 billion development cost cap.

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Webb telescope

"On its journey to space, Webb will be the first mission to complete an intricate and technically-challenging series of deployments – a critical part of Webb’s journey to its orbit about one million miles from Earth. Once in orbit, Webb will unfold its delicate five-layered sunshield until it reaches the size of a tennis court. Webb will then deploy its iconic 6.5-meter primary mirror that will detect the faint light of far-away stars and galaxies," as per NASA. Webb is an international program led by NASA, in partnership with ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency.

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(Image Credit: NASA/Website)