Revealed one by one in a somewhat glitchy webcast, the first science-grade views of the cosmos captured by the James Webb Space Telescope are finally known to the world, stunning professional astronomers, space enthusiasts as well as members of the general public who otherwise don’t care about space at all.Â
Already, the preview image released on Monday (July 11) by U.S. President Joe Biden, prompted some unexpected science aficionados to express their awe on Twitter.
“NASA says in this photo, the Webb telescope has photographed just a speck the size of a grain of sand,” American actress and activist Mia Farrow wrote in a tweet (opens in new tab). “In this image — we see galaxies and galaxies — the light from galaxies has traveled billions of years to us!”
Gallery: James Webb Space Telescope’s 1st photos
Good morning everyone! !NASA says in this photo, the Webb’ telescope has photographed just a speck the size of a grain of sand. In this image — we see galaxies and galaxies- the light from galaxies has traveled billions of years to us! pic.twitter.com/7nnP1M9yksJuly 12, 2022
Astronauts, in particular, hailed the new images.
“Some days we take baby steps in exploration, some days we take leaps,” NASA astronaut Anne McClain wrote on Twitter (opens in new tab). “This is a leap. A vivid, beautiful, fantastic leap.”
Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly echoed the sentiment. “Big win for science!” he wrote in a tweet (opens in new tab).
British guitarist Brian May, member of the legendary band Queen who is also an astrophysicist, celebrated the image release with a new song recorded with fellow musician Graham Gouldman. The song, called Floating in Heaven, was released on Spotify shortly after Biden revealed the first image on Monday evening.Â
“STOP THE PRESS!” May wrote on his Instagram account (opens in new tab). “Thank you Mr POTUS!!! First images from the James Webb Space Telescope!”
British astronaut Tim Peake went for an uncontroversial response to the newly released images, stressing the international nature of the project.
“It’s hard to overstate what impact #JWST is going to have on science, astronomy & our understanding of the universe,” Peake tweeted (opens in new tab). “Incredible images. Huge congratulations to the international team that has made this possible.”
While primarily known as a NASA mission, the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope is a collaboration involving the countries of the European Space Agency, Canada and other partners across the world.
It’s hard to overstate what impact #JWST is going to have on science, astronomy & our understanding of the universe. Incredible images. Huge congratulations to the international team that has made this possible. pic.twitter.com/KEL6Im0DCKJuly 12, 2022
Internet personality Hank Green also shared several of the new images. In addition, he offered a helpful tip for distinguishing images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope from those taken by Webb.
“From this moment on you will always be able to tell the difference between a Hubble image and a JWST image: Hubble stars have four spikes in a cross. JWST stars have six in a snowflake,” he wrote in a tweet (opens in new tab).
From this moment on you will always be able to tell the difference between a Hubble image and a JWST image:Hubble stars have four spikes in a cross. JWST stars have six in a snowflake. Thank you for your time. pic.twitter.com/BWsv2WqCqDJuly 12, 2022
In its official tweet celebrating the long-awaited release, NASA also emphasized the importance of international collaboration in science and astronomy.
“Better together. International collaboration gave us the most powerful space telescope ever made, and the deepest infrared views of the universe ever seen,” the space agency said. “With our partners at @ESA and @CSA_ASC, the science can begin.”
Follow Tereza Pultarova on Twitter @TerezaPultarova. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.Â
