Launched in 2021 “James Webb Telescope‘, NASA announced that at least 19 small meteorites collided between May 22nd and 24th.
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What is the impact on the “James Webb Telescope” mission where the meteorite collided?
NASA announced in June that a small meteorite hit the James Webb telescope. And commented that the damage to the telescope was greater than expected before launch.
In the report, an image that tells the magnitude of the impact (on the right is the image following the small meteorite impact) is released. The small meteorite hit the C3 mirror in the lower right corner of the image. You can see that some of the mirror segments are white.
Experts say the damage is “irreparable.” However, since only a small part of the telescope’s area was affected, it seems that missions can be continued by readjusting the remaining mirror segments.
By calculating fuel consumption, the telescope should have lasted 20 years in space. It is not known how much impact this small meteorite impact will have on the operation of the telescope.
Small meteorites are a familiar threat to spacecraft in near-Earth orbit. The US Space Surveillance Network has confirmed that there are more than 23,000 small meteorites the size of softballs in orbit. Furthermore, there are millions of smaller stones, and we cannot monitor them all.
The International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope are among the long-term programs still in operation today, despite occasional meteor strikes.
The Webb telescope orbits Lagrange Point, regarding 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. Therefore, it is said that the risk of meteorite collision is higher than that of satellites flying near the earth. In fact, it seems that small meteorites collide once a month for six months following launch.
NASA is investigating how often such phenomena occur. “It is not yet clear whether the May 2022 collision with segment C3 was a rare occurrence,” the team report said.
The researchers also believe that the Webb telescope may be more susceptible to damage from small meteorites than predicted by pre-launch modeling. If there is such a risk, NASA will estimate the population of dangerous small meteorites and make improvements such as restrictions on pointing directions.
The Webb telescope returned to normal operation following six months of commissioning, despite an unexpected impact on the C3 mirror. Recently, we have succeeded in photographing the Tarantula Nebula, which is said to be the hottest and gigantic known star, located at a distance of regarding 161,000 light years.
