First instrument for the JWST is completed and handed over to NASA
May 9, 2012 - 4:00:00 AM
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MIRI will allow astronomers to explore the formation of planets around distant stars and could even pave the way for investigations into the habitability of other planetary systems.
By UK Space Agency,
[RxPG] 09 May 2012 --First instrument for the JWST is completed and handed over to NASAAfter more than ten years of work by more than 200 engineers, the Mid InfraRed Instrument (MIRI), a camera so sensitive it could see a candle on one of Jupiter's moons, has been declared ready for delivery by the European Space Agency and NASA. The MIRI Optical System, an instrument for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) that will eventually take up a position four times further away from the Earth than the Moon. It will now be shipped to NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center where it will be integrated with the other three instruments and the telescope.
MIRI is the first of the four instruments on board the JWST to be completed. The handover ceremony between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA at the Institute of Engineering and Technology in London today is the culmination of a long term collaboration effort from teams across both continents.
Attending the ceremony was David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science, who said:MIRI is the impressive result of more than ten years of work, led by Britain in partnership with Europe. With world-leading space research facilities at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, a host of excellent universities and strategic direction from the UK Space Agency, the UK is clearly well placed to contribute to major global missions. I am extremely proud to be here for the handover of MIRI to NASA's James Webb team.
The UK guided the development work by these teams, in addition to employing UK technologies in the construction of key components and carrying out the assembly, integration, testing and ground calibration at the Science and Technology Facility Council's (STFC) RAL Space. The instrument has been subjected to exhaustive mechanical and thermal testing at the same facility to make sure it can not only survive the rigors of a journey into space, but also remain operational for the life of the mission.
Gillian Wright, the European Principal Investigator for MIRI based at STFC's Astronomy Technology Centre said: The whole team is delighted that our hard work and dedication has resulted in a MIRI instrument that will meet all our scientific expectations. It is wonderful to be the first to achieve this major milestone for the JWST project. We can now look forward to significant scientific discoveries when it is launched.
MIRI will allow astronomers to explore the formation of planets around distant stars and could even pave the way for investigations into the habitability of other planetary systems.
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