how far can the webb telescope see
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is designed to observe a wide range of astronomical phenomena, from nearby objects within our solar system to extremely distant galaxies formed just after the Big Bang. Its ability to “see” far into the universe is primarily determined by its sensitivity to infrared wavelengths, which allows it to peer through dust and gas and observe objects that are too distant or too faint for earlier telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope.
In terms of distance, the JWST can see back in time to when the universe was just a few hundred million years old, a period known as the “Cosmic Dawn.” This corresponds to observing galaxies that are tens of billions of light-years away. Specifically, the JWST is capable of detecting light from objects as far away as 13.5 billion light-years. This means that the light we see from these objects today has been traveling through space for almost the entire history of the universe, which is about 13.8 billion years old.
To put this into perspective, the farther away an object is, the further back in time we see it due to the finite speed of light. The JWST’s ability to observe such distant objects makes it an invaluable tool for studying the formation of the first stars, the assembly of the first galaxies, and the evolution of the universe over cosmic time.
It’s important to note that while the JWST can theoretically observe objects at these extreme distances, the brightness and resolution required to detect them depend on a combination of the telescope’s advanced instruments, the duration of observations, and the ability to distinguish faint signals from the background noise. Nonetheless, the JWST represents a significant leap forward in our ability to study the distant universe.
