The international press conference of the space agencies NASA, ESA and CSA will be broadcast in the Kepler Hall of the Planetarium from 4.15 p.m. – immediately after the end of the regular afternoon screening “Auroras – Lights of the North” – in which the first scientific data and images of the new James Webb space telescope will be presented.
dr Uwe Lemmer, Director of the Stuttgart Planetarium: “This new observatory, which was launched six months ago, resembles a spaceship from Star Wars films in shape and breaks all records in terms of size, performance, complexity and cost. The pressure of expectations is correspondingly high, so that the results are already being presented worldwide. “The enthusiasm about the first measurements is great among those involved in the project,” says Dr. Lemmer, who, like the entire planetarium team, is looking forward to the recordings. “Members of the NASA science team who have already had a look at the data speak of stunningly good images and sensational insights into unexplored regions of the cosmos.”
For the first time, a spectrum has been measured from the atmosphere of a planet orbiting a distant star. In the future, this will open up the possibility of examining other planets beyond the solar system for signs of life. Additional images show stars in the process of formation and galaxies that formed over 13 billion years ago. More details will be announced at the press conference of the American NASA, the Canadian space agency CSA and the European ESA.
Since the experts from the USA, Canada and Europe will be giving their explanations in English, important passages of the broadcast will be translated live in the planetarium. There is also a lot of additional information in the foyer of the planetarium. A video wall shows essential sections of the assembly and launch preparations for the Webb telescope on twelve screens. A full scale pattern of the 18 mirror segments that give the Webb telescope its distinctive appearance is shown on the floor in the planetarium foyer. In this way, one can directly experience how large the light-gathering surface of the Webb is compared to its predecessor Hubble.
The Kepler Hall of the planetarium will open for the event on July 12 at around 4:15 p.m. Admission is free.