Primary Mirror Stats
Mirror Type:
Segmented parabolic reflector
Width:
21.7 feet (6.6 meters) at its widest point
Area:
270 square feet (25 square meters)
Mass:
705 kilograms (1,555 pounds on Earth)
Focal Length:
414.4 feet (131.4 meters)
Optical Resolution:
0.07 arc-seconds, diffraction-limited at 2-micrometer wavelengths (0.0317 arc-second pixels)
Material:
Beryllium, with a thin coating of gold
Number of Segments:
18 segments
Observatory Stats
Operating Temperature:
-390 degrees Fahrenheit (40 kelvins; -235 degrees Celsius)
Observatory Mass:
About 6,200 kilograms (13,650 pounds on Earth)
Sunshield Size:
69.5 by 46.5 feet (21.2 by 14.2 meters)
Launch Date:
December 25, 2021 at 7:20 a.m. EST
Launch Vehicle:
Ariane 5 rocket, provided by the European Space Agency
Launch Site:
The Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana
Location:
Orbiting the Sun 1 million miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth at the Second Lagrange Point (L2)
Orbit Shape:
As seen from Earth at midnight, the Webb orbit completes a large loop of 1,000,000 kilometers in diameter twice a year.
Transit Time to Orbit:
About 1 month
Science Mission Lifetime:
5 years, with a goal of 10 years
Solar Array Power:
2,000 watts
Maximum Data Rate (Deep Space Network):
28 megabits per second (Mbps)