5 ms·

Amazing. Can't wait to see what the James Webb launch is going to show us.

SavantIdiot 5y ago
I wonder how they prioritize time? There's going to be a huge backlog of people wanting to re-image everything, the decision making procedure must be stressful.
- sam-2727 5y ago
  First round has already been awarded: https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/approved-programs/cycle-1-go https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/approved-progra...
  - SavantIdiot 5y ago
    Awesome, thanks! First up (if I'm reading this correctly, ID#1424): Principal Investigator: Leigh Fletcher PI Institution: University of Leicester Title: Extreme Events on Gas Giants: Impacts and Storm Eruptions Allocation: 10.4 hours allocation change history I bet those 10.4 hours are planned down to the millisecond.
    - dmurray 5y ago
      I'm surprised that is the first priority. It presumably targets Jupiter and Saturn: I thought the JWT was primarily for observing objects further afield. Sure, there's a ton we don't know yet about Jupiter and Saturn...but for reference Juno cost 0.1x the amount of the JWT and observed Jupiter from one million times closer [0]. Is the JWT really the most economical way to make these observations? [0] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_(spacecraft) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_(spacecraft)
      - airstrike 5y ago
        Maybe they're starting with an easier goal and then work their way up from there? Maybe that allows the scientists to calibrate the instruments or whatever I don't know the first thing about how any of this works, but that would be my first guess.
      - dylan604 5y ago
        Got to dial in those instruments some how. Might as well be something large and easy to find.
  - semaphoreP 5y ago
    And this is the program that will study this system: https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/program-information.html?id=2044 https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/program-informa...
  - yummybear 5y ago
    Do the researchers pay to use the telescope or how does this work?
    - privong 5y ago
      > Do the researchers pay to use the telescope or how does this work? In general, these types of flagship facilities (JWST, Hubble, etc.) are funded by the government (via NASA in the US). In some cases, larger ground-based observatories (e.g., Keck, Large Binocular Telescope) are funded by a combination of private consortia (consisting of foundations and public/private universities) and competitively awarded scientific grants (e.g., from the National Science Foundation, in the US). The operations are generally paid for by the above sources. Researchers apply for time through a competitive proposal process where ideas for using the facility are collected and evaluated, with proposals awarded telescope time based on scientific merit and technical feasibility. Sometimes, particularly for investigators located in the US working with space telescope data, funding is awarded to the investigating team along with the telescope time. This funding is used to support the analysis of the collected data (e.g., to hire faculty/postdoctoral researchers/students, purchase computers, etc.). For ground-based facilities, researchers often apply for funding from the National Science Foundation to support the analysis of their data.
- over_bridge 5y ago
  Indeed, they must know already what will be imaged first. It would make sense to look at something Hubble has already studied in detail - both for calibration but also to understand the differences in the data outputs. So it might be an updated version of an iconic Hubble shot. It would be a nice victory lap for the team to see those comparisons. I'm nervous just thinking about getting to that first operation and the crazy set of steps that need to be perfect on the way.

I wonder how they prioritize time? There's going to be a huge backlog of people wanting to re-image everything, the decision making procedure must be stressful.

sam-2727 5y ago
First round has already been awarded: https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/approved-programs/cycle-1-go https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/approved-progra...
- SavantIdiot 5y ago
  Awesome, thanks! First up (if I'm reading this correctly, ID#1424): Principal Investigator: Leigh Fletcher PI Institution: University of Leicester Title: Extreme Events on Gas Giants: Impacts and Storm Eruptions Allocation: 10.4 hours allocation change history I bet those 10.4 hours are planned down to the millisecond.
  - dmurray 5y ago
    I'm surprised that is the first priority. It presumably targets Jupiter and Saturn: I thought the JWT was primarily for observing objects further afield. Sure, there's a ton we don't know yet about Jupiter and Saturn...but for reference Juno cost 0.1x the amount of the JWT and observed Jupiter from one million times closer [0]. Is the JWT really the most economical way to make these observations? [0] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_(spacecraft) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_(spacecraft)
    - airstrike 5y ago
      Maybe they're starting with an easier goal and then work their way up from there? Maybe that allows the scientists to calibrate the instruments or whatever I don't know the first thing about how any of this works, but that would be my first guess.
    - dylan604 5y ago
      Got to dial in those instruments some how. Might as well be something large and easy to find.
- semaphoreP 5y ago
  And this is the program that will study this system: https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/program-information.html?id=2044 https://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science-execution/program-informa...
- yummybear 5y ago
  Do the researchers pay to use the telescope or how does this work?
  - privong 5y ago
    > Do the researchers pay to use the telescope or how does this work? In general, these types of flagship facilities (JWST, Hubble, etc.) are funded by the government (via NASA in the US). In some cases, larger ground-based observatories (e.g., Keck, Large Binocular Telescope) are funded by a combination of private consortia (consisting of foundations and public/private universities) and competitively awarded scientific grants (e.g., from the National Science Foundation, in the US). The operations are generally paid for by the above sources. Researchers apply for time through a competitive proposal process where ideas for using the facility are collected and evaluated, with proposals awarded telescope time based on scientific merit and technical feasibility. Sometimes, particularly for investigators located in the US working with space telescope data, funding is awarded to the investigating team along with the telescope time. This funding is used to support the analysis of the collected data (e.g., to hire faculty/postdoctoral researchers/students, purchase computers, etc.). For ground-based facilities, researchers often apply for funding from the National Science Foundation to support the analysis of their data.
over_bridge 5y ago
Indeed, they must know already what will be imaged first. It would make sense to look at something Hubble has already studied in detail - both for calibration but also to understand the differences in the data outputs. So it might be an updated version of an iconic Hubble shot. It would be a nice victory lap for the team to see those comparisons. I'm nervous just thinking about getting to that first operation and the crazy set of steps that need to be perfect on the way.