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As someone with formerly a connection to the astronomy world, I am certainly glad to see attention on this achievement. But I also know that the science + rese

As someone with formerly a connection to the astronomy world, I am certainly glad to see attention on this achievement. But I also know that the science + research community should also be grateful for the general public's complete lack of memory or understanding of the science, that keeps them coming back and fawning over press releases like this and in a way keeps the field funded. (The cynic in me says thank the lord for the new people each year who get to rediscover the beauty of old images for the first time.) For all they know, the image released today could've been a snapshot from WFPC2 HDF 20 years ago or ACS UDF from 10 years ago -- the images look basically the same to the outsider's eye! Very little about the image itself visually tells you that it's in the IR. Much like some medical research "breakthrough" that gets touted that could've been the same announcement from 20 years ago, no lay person really knows the difference. Still, sincere congratulations on decades of waiting. edit: No, I am not saying that the images are a repost... obviously. Read my message more carefully.

voz_ 4y ago
Wrong all over. Check the other comments, they are def not the same. The condescending and cynical tone also destroys any inquisitiveness. "Lay" people can absolutely tell the difference.
- supernova87a 4y ago
  You're taking me a little too literally, I'm not saying that the public is being duped. Of course this is a new image from JWST. And this comment isn't really for general public consumption or to deflate the general public's enthusiasm for the achievement. I'm just saying that the field benefits from new discoveries that seem just like old discoveries being embraced by the general public even though they won't really know the full difference or underlying science. I think every field has this to some extent. So, ok, here you go -- I will take you up on your challenge. Which one of these is from the UDF 15 years ago, and which is from today's announcement? https://imgur.com/a/kga5CxY https://imgur.com/a/kga5CxY https://imgur.com/a/Wf1vHio https://imgur.com/a/Wf1vHio
  - lovehashbrowns 4y ago
    You're taking all the context out of the two pictures. These pictures are not viewed in isolation. This post is full of comments of people asking questions about things like the gravitational lensing. And the picture will then end up in videos like these https://youtu.be/oAVjF_7ensg https://youtu.be/oAVjF_7ensg which gather millions of views and which help educate people on what the picture means and why it's significant.
    - supernova87a 4y ago
      I could’ve just as easily chosen lensing images from both telescopes. Look the thread is getting lost here. Let’s just call it a day on this random thought.
  - checker 4y ago
    I'm going to guess the first is Webb due to the mirror pattern (but that's cheating and your larger point stands).
  - anewpersonality 4y ago
pkaye 4y ago
I'm sure someone could check the MAST archives (https://archive.stsci.edu/ https://archive.stsci.edu/) of all historical Hubble pictures to see if they match up.

voz_ 4y ago

Wrong all over. Check the other comments, they are def not the same. The condescending and cynical tone also destroys any inquisitiveness. "Lay" people can absolutely tell the difference.

supernova87a 4y ago
You're taking me a little too literally, I'm not saying that the public is being duped. Of course this is a new image from JWST. And this comment isn't really for general public consumption or to deflate the general public's enthusiasm for the achievement. I'm just saying that the field benefits from new discoveries that seem just like old discoveries being embraced by the general public even though they won't really know the full difference or underlying science. I think every field has this to some extent. So, ok, here you go -- I will take you up on your challenge. Which one of these is from the UDF 15 years ago, and which is from today's announcement? https://imgur.com/a/kga5CxY https://imgur.com/a/kga5CxY https://imgur.com/a/Wf1vHio https://imgur.com/a/Wf1vHio
- lovehashbrowns 4y ago
  You're taking all the context out of the two pictures. These pictures are not viewed in isolation. This post is full of comments of people asking questions about things like the gravitational lensing. And the picture will then end up in videos like these https://youtu.be/oAVjF_7ensg https://youtu.be/oAVjF_7ensg which gather millions of views and which help educate people on what the picture means and why it's significant.
  - supernova87a 4y ago
    I could’ve just as easily chosen lensing images from both telescopes. Look the thread is getting lost here. Let’s just call it a day on this random thought.
- checker 4y ago
  I'm going to guess the first is Webb due to the mirror pattern (but that's cheating and your larger point stands).
- anewpersonality 4y ago

pkaye 4y ago

I'm sure someone could check the MAST archives (https://archive.stsci.edu/ https://archive.stsci.edu/) of all historical Hubble pictures to see if they match up.