RIT scientists await first images from James Webb Space Telescope

The public will soon get its first glimpse at images from the most powerful observational instrument ever made. NASA will reveal the James Webb Space Telescope’s first images and spectra at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, July 12.

After the images are released, RIT faculty closely involved with JWST will make media appearances to react to the images and explain the significance of this momentous scientific achievement:

• at 1 p.m. EDT Friday, July 15, two RIT faculty will appear on WXXI’s Connections with Evan Dawson to discuss the first JWST images. The hour-long program will feature Associate Professor Jeyhan Kartaltepe from RIT’s School of Physics and Astronomy and Professor Joel Kastner in RIT’s Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science and School of Physics and Astronomy. Kartaltepe is principal investigator of the COSMOS-Web program, the largest General Observer program selected for JWST’s first year. Kastner served on JWST’s Time Allocation Committee and will be on the Users Committee.
• The Bloomberg series Giant Leap released an episode about JWST shortly after the first images were released featuring interview footage with Kartaltepe.
• At 9 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, July 13, the PBS program NOVA will premiere an episode about how NASA engineers built and launched the most ambitious telescope of all time featuring interview footage with Kartaltepe.
• Kartaltepe is quoted in the cover story for the latest edition of New Scientist.