Webb may have found evidence for the long-theorized first generation of stars — as well as the most distant active supermassive black hole to date. GN-z11, a galaxy that existed 430 million years after the big bang, is giving up its secrets: go.nasa.gov/49AtIU0
GN-z11, an extremely bright galaxy, was discovered by @NASAHubble and is one of the earliest distant galaxies ever observed. Webb found the first clear evidence explaining why it is so luminous: a 2-million-solar-mass central supermassive black hole rapidly gobbling up matter.

Three explosions, two stars, and a rare discovery.

Webb recently detected tellurium, an element rarer than platinum on Earth, in the explosive aftermath of two neutron stars merging. The detection may help reshape our understanding of the cosmos:
Thread👇 nasa.gov/missions/webb/…
In a distant galaxy, there was once a pair of stars bound by gravity. Then one star exploded. What remained was its collapsed core, a dense remnant called a neutron star. The explosion launched the neutron star outward and pulled along its companion, still tied to it by gravity.

On the icy crust of Jupiter's moon Europa, Webb has discovered carbon dioxide that likely originated in the liquid water ocean below. Understanding the chemistry of this ocean could help determine if it is a good place for life as we know it: nasa.gov/feature/goddar…
Webb found carbon dioxide to be most abundant in an area called Tara Regio, where there is evidence of material exchanging between the ocean and crust. Carbon dioxide isn’t stable on Europa’s surface, so scientists believe it was deposited fairly recently (geologically speaking).

Early in our cosmic history, gas in the universe shifted (over hundreds of millions of years) from opaque to transparent, allowing light to travel freely. But how? Webb proves the answer lies in galaxies from the early universe: go.nasa.gov/43TriMV

Let's clear this up 👇 Astronomers looked into galaxies so far away that their light took almost 13 billion years to reach us. That made these galaxies the perfect window into what the universe was like about 900 million years after the big bang, just before it became fully transparent.

Com-et me, bro. ☄️

Webb confirmed the 1st detection of water vapor around a rare type of comet in the main asteroid belt. This suggests that ice from the early solar system can be preserved there—a breakthrough for studying the origins of water on Earth: go.nasa.gov/3BucEzm This comet is called a main belt comet, a fairly new classification. Unlike most comets, found in areas beyond the orbit of Neptune, main belt comets reside in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. And unlike asteroids, they periodically display a halo and tail.

Uranus has never looked better. Really.

Only Voyager 2 and Keck (with adaptive optics) have imaged the planet's faintest rings before, and never as clearly as Webb’s first glimpse at this ice giant, which also highlights bright atmospheric features. go.nasa.gov/3nTo3oO Uranus rotates on its side, causing its poles to experience 42 years of sunlight & 42 years of darkness. (It takes 84 years to orbit the Sun.) Voyager flew by Uranus in 1986 when it was summer at its south pole. Now the south pole is out of view, facing the darkness of space.

Gold stars for you! 🌟

Shown here is M92, a cluster of thousands of stars located 27,000 light-years away in our Milky Way. One of Webb’s first science observations, this was taken as part of a program designed to help scientists make the most of Webb: go.nasa.gov/3ILMCMB M92 is a classic target for studying how stars evolve. Not only is it so close that Webb can single out individual stars, but it contains some of the oldest stars in the Milky Way. We can take what we learn from M92 to know more about distant stars in the ancient universe.

Galaxy brain 🤯

Preliminary Webb science shows galaxies confirmed by spectroscopy to date back to less than 400 million years after the big bang. Finding and confirming early galaxies is a continuous process, and Webb is just getting started: go.nasa.gov/3uB4npV We need spectroscopy to confirm how far away a galaxy is, as closer galaxies can “masquerade” as distant ones. Spectroscopy refers to breaking light into its components to create spectra, or “barcodes.” On a "barcode," elements and molecules have distinct signatures we can read.

Countdown to a new star ⏳

Hidden in the neck of this “hourglass” of light are the very beginnings of a new star — a protostar. The clouds of dust and gas within this region are only visible in infrared light, the wavelengths that Webb specializes in: go.nasa.gov/3TKluzI This protostar is a hot, puffy clump of gas that’s only a fraction of the mass of our Sun. As it draws material in, its core will compress, get hotter, and eventually begin nuclear fusion — creating a star!

This is what you’ve waited for.

Journey with us through Webb’s breathtaking view of the Pillars of Creation, where scores of newly formed stars glisten like dewdrops among floating, translucent columns of gas and dust: go.nasa.gov/3EPPiXW

Here’s your guided tour ⬇️ First, direct your attention to the tips of the pillars, many of which appear tinged with fiery “lava.” Here, young stars periodically shoot out jets of material that collide with the pillars, which can then form wavy patterns. Energetic hydrogen molecules create that red glow.

Hey Neptune. Did you ring? 👋

Webb’s latest image is the clearest look at Neptune's rings in 30+ years, and our first time seeing them in infrared light. Take in Webb's ghostly, ethereal views of the planet and its dust bands, rings and moons: go.nasa.gov/3RXxoGq #IAC2022 In visible light, Neptune appears blue due to small amounts of methane gas in its atmosphere. Webb’s NIRCam instrument instead observed Neptune at near-infrared wavelengths, so Neptune doesn’t look so blue!

Webb got its first look at @NASAMars! 👀

The close-up on the left reveals surface features such as Huygens Crater, dark volcanic Syrtis Major, and Hellas Basin, while the “heat map" on the right shows light being given off by Mars as it loses heat. More: go.nasa.gov/3xz18kU Webb’s unique perspective is meant to complement the work that rovers and other missions do. From where it sits, Webb can study short-term events like dust storms, weather patterns, as well as seasonal changes.

Talk about out of this world! This is Webb’s first direct image of a planet outside of our solar system, and it hints at Webb’s future possibilities for studying distant worlds: go.nasa.gov/3KGJ9OU

Not what you expected? Let’s walk through the details👇 This is a gas giant named HIP 65426 b, which is about 6-12 times the mass of Jupiter. It is young as planets go — about 15 to 20 million years old, compared to our 4.5-billion-year-old Earth.

Did somebody say new Webb images?

#ICYMI, we just dropped an incredible new Cartwheel Galaxy image, and yes, more images will be rolling out over the coming weeks! But there’s a few things you should know first about Webb’s next steps 👇

https://twitter.com/NASAWebb/status/1554469773433606144

Science is a collaborative process! You may have seen some preliminary findings from Webb data already. But before NASA can publicize news results, we have to wait for findings to be peer-reviewed — meaning that scientists have checked each other’s work.

Put a ring on it! 💍

Compare views of the Southern Ring nebula and its pair of stars by Webb’s NIRCam (L) & MIRI (R) instruments. The dimmer, dying star is expelling gas and dust that Webb sees through in unprecedented detail: nasa.gov/webbfirstimage… #UnfoldTheUniverse The stars – and their layers of light – steal more attention in the NIRCam image, while in the MIRI image, Webb reveals for the first time that the dying star is cloaked in dust. In thousands of years, these delicate, gaseous layers will dissipate into surrounding space.

👀 Sneak a peek at the deepest & sharpest infrared image of the early universe ever taken — all in a day’s work for the Webb telescope. (Literally, capturing it took less than a day!) This is Webb’s first image released as we begin to #UnfoldTheUniverse: nasa.gov/webbfirstimage… This isn’t the farthest back we’ve observed. Non-infrared missions like COBE & WMAP saw the universe closer to the Big Bang (~380,000 years after), when there was only microwave background radiation, but no stars or galaxies. Webb sees a few 100 million years after the Big Bang.

“It’s full of stars!” ✨

This mosaic represents a sparkling turning point as we #UnfoldTheUniverse. #NASAWebb’s mirrors are now fully aligned! Next is instrument calibration, the final phase before Webb is ready for science: go.nasa.gov/3OJWBD1

What do we see here? ⤵️ First, a quick breakdown. “Fully aligned” means that Webb’s mirrors are now directing fully focused light collected from space down into each instrument. Each instrument is also successfully capturing images with the light being delivered to them.

Cool news! Webb’s MIRI instrument recently passed through its critical “pinch point” and cooled to just a few kelvins above absolute zero, which is the coldest you can go: go.nasa.gov/3M6MbeJ

Wondering why MIRI is extremely chill? Thread ❄️ All of Webb’s instruments detect infrared light (which we feel as heat), so they need to be cold to seek out faint heat signatures in the universe. MIRI detects longer infrared wavelengths than the others, so it needs to be even colder.

To chill to its operating temperature of less than 7 K (-447 F or -266 C), Webb’s MIRI instrument uses a special refrigerator. But it also requires heaters to control its cooldown & prevent ice from forming in space. 🧊

Wait, ice? Allow us to explain (thread ⤵️) When Webb launched, moist air was entrapped between components like the sunshield membranes and its many layers of insulation. Other Webb materials absorbed water vapor from Earth’s atmosphere. Most of this air escaped just 200 seconds after liftoff, but some moisture remained.

Small adjustments, major progress!

Having completed 2 more mirror alignment steps, #NASAWebb’s optical performance will be able to meet or exceed its science goals. Now that’s good optics! 😉 go.nasa.gov/3KMV1gW #UnfoldTheUniverse

Curious about this image? Thread ⬇️ While the purpose of Webb’s latest image was to focus on a bright star and evaluate the alignment progress, Webb’s optics are so sensitive that galaxies and other stars can be seen in the background. Watch this video for an in-depth explanation of how the image was created!

Bonus image! When it’s time to focus, sometimes you need to take a good look at yourself.

This “selfie” taken by Webb of its primary mirror was not captured by an externally mounted engineering camera, but with a special lens within its NIRCam instrument. #UnfoldTheUniverse This special lens is meant for engineering, not science, and allows NIRCam to capture an “inward-looking” image of the primary mirror. This image helps us to check that the telescope is aligned with the science instruments. blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2022/02/1…