Nasa recently doubled a large “city-killer” asteroid‘s chances of striking Earth in 2032, and scientists will further study the space rock through the James Webb Telescope.
The space rock, known as Asteroid 2024 YR4, had its impact odds for 2032 revised by NASA’s Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), and a new study found it could also have a slim chance of smashing into the Moon.
Early estimates suggest the asteroid could range between 130ft (40m) and 295ft (90m) in diameter, just under the height of Big Ben.
Experts will continue to track the asteroid with the James Webb Telescope. But how powerful is this star-gazing gadget? Here’s everything you need to know about the super telescope.
What is the James Webb Telescope?
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a NASA-led observatory. It studies the formation and evolution of stars, galaxies, and planetary systems. It’s the largest and most powerful space telescope ever built.
Its mission is to search for the first stars and galaxies, study the formation of our solar system, study the atmospheres of exoplanets (planets that orbit a star outside the solar system) and understand the origins of life.
The super telescope was developed through a partnership between NASA and the European and Canadian space agencies to build upon and extend the discoveries made by its predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope.
When was the James Webb Telescope made?
Construction began on the Webb telescope as early as 2004, but it wasn’t launched into space until Christmas Day in 2021.
It generated its first images in July 2022, when then President Biden unveiled its first picture of space, which is the sharpest image taken of the distant universe to date.
The telescope is now being put to use to examine the asteroid that has a chance of colliding with Earth in less than ten years.
How powerful is the James Webb Telescope?
This piece of equipment is the most powerful telescope ever made. NASA explains that the Webb telescope boasts infrared sensing equipment, and was built with instruments sensitive to light. Light travels slowly, meaning the far-off scenes which are reachable from the telescope happened way back in the early years of the universe.
This gives scientists the chance to study some of the earliest stars that exploded in supernova events, which created the elements necessary to build planets and form life.
The light from these early supernova explosions has been travelling for so long that it is now very dim. The Webb telescope needs to be extremely sensitive to see this dim light, which requires a huge mirror.
On the Webb telescope, 18 hexagonal mirrors combine to form a massive primary mirror that is 21 feet (6.5 meters) across. The surface area of this mirror is six times larger than that of the Hubble Space Telescope, meaning the JWST can generate images of space almost twice as fast.
NASA has been issuing frequent updates on Asteroid 2024 YR4, and will continue to study its size and trajectory using the James Webb Telescope.