Ask HN: Why is the James Webb telescope so exciting?

1 pointpkdpic1 comment

Im excited regardless cause Im a nerd, just feeling like Im getting lost in the weeds trying to figure out the big picture motivations / potentials behind it. Finding aliens? What happened an 8th of a second after the big bang? Dark matter something something?

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TLDR: Yes, Yes, Yes

Infra-red is good for finding some spectral lines, and finding the temperature of exo-planets which can be useful when looking for extra-terrestrial life.

It also lets us look further back in time and through dust clouds.

Early universe observations provide useful info about dark matter possibilities.

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