The James Webb Space Telescope has been delayed for more than 14 years. And now a few days are added, NASA announces.

Actually, the space telescope should have been launched on December 18. But due to a small accident, there is no other option but to postpone the launch. The telescope will now be launched no earlier than December 22.

Ariane 5

The space telescope is currently located in French Guiana. From there, the telescope will be launched using an Ariane 5 rocket. In recent days, the space telescope has been clamped to a so-called launch vehicle adapter, which will in turn be used to integrate the observatory into the upper stage of the Ariane 5 rocket.

clamp band

The fact that the launch of the telescope is taking a little longer can be traced back to one such clamping band. It has unexpectedly sprung loose, causing the telescope to vibrate.

Injury

Such a vibration could theoretically have caused damage to one of the telescope’s components. And that is why it was decided to subject the telescope to some extra tests. But that takes time. And that’s why the launch has now been pushed back four days anyway. Later this week it should become clear whether the telescope has been damaged and whether it will remain with these four days of delay.

The James Webb Space Telescope has been delayed from launch. When the telescope was built, NASA expected it to be launched sometime between 2007 and 2011. But as work on the telescope progressed, it became clear that building it was a lot more difficult than expected. And the launch was repeatedly delayed. First to 2013. Later to 2018. And then the spring of 2019. A little later, May 2020. Then spring 2021, autumn 2021 and finally December 18, 2021. But again the planning has to be revised. Would this really be the last time?