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Updated November 15th, 2022 at 23:13 IST

James Webb Space Telescope suffers micrometeoroid strike that NASA didn't see coming

James Webb Space Telescope took another micrometeoroid hit in May this year, but this time it was bigger than the observatory was tested for, says NASA.

Reported by: Harsh Vardhan
James Webb Space Telescope
Image: NASA | Image:self
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The primary mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope took another micrometeoroid hit in May this year, but this time it was bigger than the observatory was tested for. NASA says that Webb’s primary mirror, which consists of 18 small hexagonal mirrors and measures 21 feet tall, has been engineered to take such hits as the menace of tiny space rocks is unavoidable in outer space. Mike Menzel, Webb's lead mission systems engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, said that 14 measurable micrometeoroid hits were recently detected on the primary mirror with an average of one to two per month.

"The resulting optical errors from all but one of these were well within what we had budgeted and expected when building the observatory," Menzel said in an official statement. "One of these was higher than our expectations and prelaunch models; however, even after this event our current optical performance is still twice as good as our requirements." For the unversed, Webb is installed at the second Lagrange point (L2), which is a gravitationally stable location roughly 15 lakh km away from Earth and this is not the first time the telescope was struck by micrometeoroids. 

Will the impact affect Webb's operations?

Following the impact, NASA formed a working group of optics and micrometeoroid experts who concluded after an analysis that the micrometeoroid strike was a rare statistical event both in terms of energy and in hitting a particularly sensitive location. However, the agency says that "Webb’s optical performance remains twice as good as requirements" despite the impact, meaning the telescope will continue its operations without any trouble. 

NASA further revealed that the team of experts is now chalking out a plan to minimise future impacts of this magnitude by making Webb's primary mirror face away from 'micrometeoroid avoidance zones', which would offer long-term statistical benefit. Initially estimated to have a ten-year lifespan, Webb now has fuel for over 20 years of operations, something which is credited to a precise launch conducted on December 25, 2021. 

Explaining the idea behind making Webb face away, Lee Feinberg, Webb optical telescope element manager said, "Micrometeoroids that strike the mirror head-on have twice the relative velocity and four times the kinetic energy, so avoiding this direction when feasible will help extend the exquisite optical performance for decades." He, however, clarified that observations in the micrometeoroid zones will still be carried out for time-critical targets such as those in our solar system.

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Published November 15th, 2022 at 23:13 IST

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