All the pieces of the most powerful space telescope ever are ready for assembly at NASA, the US space agency said Monday.<\/p>\n
The $8.8 billion James Webb Space Telescope is scheduled for launch in 2018 and aims to provide an unprecedented look at far-away planets and the first galaxies formed.<\/p>\n
A successor to the Hubble Space Telescope launched in 1990, it is a joint project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.<\/p>\n
All 18 of its primary mirror segments and four science instruments are now housed at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center facilities in suburban Maryland.<\/p>\n
“The recent completion of the critical design review for Webb, and the delivery of all its instruments to Goddard, mark significant progress for this mission,” said NASA administrator Charles Bolden.<\/p>\n
“It’s very exciting to see it all coming together on schedule.”<\/p>\n
The project has gained support from US lawmakers despite a number of delays and cost hikes that delayed delivery from its initial 2013 date and pushed spending way over its primary budget of $3.5 billion.<\/p>\n
SA\u2019s small mobile operators smiling<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Surprisingly simple scheme for self-assembling robots<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n