In 1990 the Hubble space telescope was launched, and after a few glitches and adjustments, it began showing us the most remarkable pictures of the universe. It has added tremendously to our understanding of the universe and how it is working.

With the launch last week of the James Webb space telescope, we are in store for some even closer looks at the beginnings of the universe. The Webb telescope has a bigger mirror with six times the area for collecting light, plus it has the ability to see on the infrared spectrum, giving it the ability to see things hidden from Hubble.

It is a $10 billion project, which is in the process of setting itself up, unfolding a large sun shield to protect its mirror from the harmful heat of the sun. Scientists are keeping their fingers crossed until everything is ready.

And when it is, we can’t wait to see what kind of images and knowledge the telescope will provide. The Webb is expected to see light from farther away, light that may have started its way to earth shortly after the Big Bang. If so, we may get a picture of the first galaxies forming.

For millenia, men have looked to the stars at night and wondered what they were, and what they meant. We have looked to them for guidance and wove them into our mythology. We have been studying them for as long as we have been on earth. Early telescopes helped us see more than we could with our naked eyes, and we have been devising bigger, more powerful telescopes ever since.

The James Webb space telescope will be the biggest and most powerful yet. We can’t wait to see what it shows us.