Source: Bill Ingalls/NASA / Getty

NASA gave the gift that will keep on giving for generations. Saturday marked the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope, an event 25 years in the making.  

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“Merry Christmas! We got you a new telescope, “tweeted NASA. “The James Webb Space Telescope launched today, beginning a one-million-mile journey to see 13.5 billion years into the past. Follow @NASAWebb and join the quest to #UnfoldTheUniverse: https://go.nasa.gov/3qHIEKT.” 

It has taken 25 years of planning and preparation for the James Webb Space Telescope to finally reach this moment. According to NASA, the revolutionary design of the telescope is constructed so that it will be able to detect past phases of “cosmic history.” The most powerful telescope ever launched, The Webb Space Telescope will document the origins of the known universe and some of the most distant galaxies of its earlier iteration.  

“The launch of the Webb Space Telescope is a pivotal moment – this is just the beginning for the Webb mission,” Gregory L. Robinson, Webb’s program director at NASA Headquarters, said in a statement. “Now, we will watch Webb’s highly anticipated and critical 29 days on the edge. When the spacecraft unfurls in space, Webb will undergo the most difficult and complex deployment sequence ever attempted in space. Once commissioning is complete, we will see awe-inspiring images that will capture our imagination.” 

Source: New NASA Space Telescope Is A ‘Christmas Gift To Humanity’