WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:00.060 --> 00:00:04.110 (reporter) NASA is giving us a behind the scenes look at their largest and most powerful 2 00:00:04.110 --> 00:00:08.180 space telescope. Here to tell us a little bit about it is the James Webb 3 00:00:08.180 --> 00:00:12.280 Space Telescope Manager Bill Ochs, thanks for joining us. 4 00:00:12.280 --> 00:00:16.330 (Bill Ochs) Sure. (reporter) What is the James Webb Space Telescope and how is it different 5 00:00:16.330 --> 00:00:20.510 from the Hubble Space Telescope. (Bill Ochs) SO, JWST is the next 6 00:00:20.510 --> 00:00:24.610 great NASA Observatories. Two main differences with Hubble 7 00:00:24.610 --> 00:00:28.640 is we are a lot bigger than Hubble. Our primary mirror is about 7 times the size 8 00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:32.670 of Hubble mirror and we are about 3 stories high and about 9 00:00:32.670 --> 00:00:36.740 width of a tennis court. That allows us to go back and look 10 00:00:36.740 --> 00:00:40.880 at some the first stars and galaxies that were formed after the 11 00:00:40.880 --> 00:00:45.060 big bang. (reporter) Once it launches, the Webb Telescope 12 00:00:45.060 --> 00:00:49.260 will travel a million miles from Earth. How do you know it will work 13 00:00:49.260 --> 00:00:53.290 so far away? (Bill Ochs) So the key to any NASA program whether its a million miles from Earth 14 00:00:53.290 --> 00:00:57.340 or whether its in low Earth orbit, its a very rigorous test program. That is we've spent years 15 00:00:57.340 --> 00:01:01.440 developing on JWST, whether it's working or doing testing we do here at Goddard 16 00:01:01.440 --> 00:01:05.540 or whether it's down in Texas, where we do some of our cryogenic testing 17 00:01:05.540 --> 00:01:09.650 out in Northrop Grumman, out in California were we put our final pieces together. 18 00:01:09.650 --> 00:01:13.720 the test program we have looks at every aspects of the telescope to make sure it works. 19 00:01:13.720 --> 00:01:17.790 (reporter) Webb is the largest telescope ever built 20 00:01:17.790 --> 00:01:21.850 How do you build a 3 story tall telescope on Earth, for what 21 00:01:21.850 --> 00:01:25.970 it will encounter in space? (Bill Ochs) So the best way to do it is to start with small pieces 22 00:01:25.970 --> 00:01:29.980 and you start testing at the smallest piece and build it up, so what have seen behind 23 00:01:29.980 --> 00:01:34.160 me and looking in our cleanroom is the completed telescope 24 00:01:34.160 --> 00:01:38.390 integrated with our four instruments, and what we are doing right now is checking 25 00:01:38.390 --> 00:01:42.470 out the optics on it to make sure they are okay, after we've gone through environmental testing 26 00:01:42.470 --> 00:01:46.520 and the environmental testing we did is to simulate the most violent environment 27 00:01:46.520 --> 00:01:50.580 it will see, which is the rocket ride, so right now we are making sure everything 28 00:01:50.580 --> 00:01:54.670 works after that. Then we will be actually done here at Goddard and ready to ship down to 29 00:01:54.670 --> 00:01:58.830 Johnson Space Center. (reporter) NASA recently discovered 7 30 00:01:58.830 --> 00:02:03.010 Earth size planets orbiting a nearby star, will Webb study these planets? 31 00:02:03.010 --> 00:02:07.050 (Bill Ochs) Yes, one of the things we will do, we will look at all the different planets, or many 32 00:02:07.050 --> 00:02:11.100 different planets that have been discovered recently. We will be able to look at the chemical 33 00:02:11.100 --> 00:02:15.140 makeup of the atmosphere of that planet, to see if really does have the basic elements to 34 00:02:15.140 --> 00:02:19.250 be able have life. (reporter) Webb is going 35 00:02:19.250 --> 00:02:23.380 to do amazing science once it's in space, what are you most excited for? 36 00:02:23.380 --> 00:02:27.560 (Bill Ochs) Probably the most exciting thing is the things we don't know, with Hubble 37 00:02:27.560 --> 00:02:31.620 it was the same way. It's really the most exciting sciences it found was the things that were never 38 00:02:31.620 --> 00:02:35.650 anticipated. Its really thinking about well what will we find that we never 39 00:02:35.650 --> 00:02:39.690 thought of before. (reporter) Where can we learn more? 40 00:02:39.690 --> 00:02:43.770 (Bill Ochs) JWST.nasa.gov (reporter) Thanks so much for 41 00:02:43.770 --> 00:02:45.565 joining us. (Bill Ochs) Thank You.