Last week, after a long wait, we finally got to see the first final images captured by James Webba masterpiece of engineering that, after many delays and budget increases, is now at the L2 Lagrange point, where it is expected to spend the rest of its lifespan, originally estimated at two decades, but which can be extended depending on a number of circumstances.

As we already told you in our review of James Webb’s past, present and future, the telescope was hit by a meteoroid in late May, specifically between the 22nd and 24th of the given month. Although the event left many on the mission breathless, the first information released about it did not diminish the significance of the incident, but confirmed that the damage was manageable and that the telescope could continue with its plans.

Based on the analysis conducted since then, it has been found that the impact exceeded predictions of damage that a single micrometeoroid could cause. Whether because of its size, speed, or resistance calculated for James Webb’s components, it is an important signal that has led the Space Telescope team to search for the necessary means to try to predict and mitigate possible futures. impacts.

meteoroid hit the C3 segment mirror, composed of 18 hexagonal mirrors, and according to subsequent checks, the optical quality of the said segment has significantly decreased with respect to the tests carried out on it before James Webb left our planet. This is not a serious problem for the other 17 mirrors in their current conditions, as can be inferred from looking at last week’s images, but it does alert us to the risks that exist.

Meteoroid impacts were expected from the very beginning of the mission, and actually with it on May 22-24, James Webb a total of five would already have been received, four of which would have no impact about the instruments and operation of the telescope. The problem is that with more hits like the critical one, James Webb’s degradation rate could be higher than originally thought, reducing his lifespan.

That is, early detection of objects that may collide with James Webb becomes a fundamental task in telescope operation. An extremely difficult task, but necessary if you want to guarantee that it will be able to offer us unique catches for at least two decades.

With information from Gizmodo