Behind the Webb: The MIRI Has Two Faces (Episode 14)

The Webb telescope has multiple science instruments, but only one of them, the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), sees light in the mid-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. MIRI's design, which allows it to both take both images and obtain the scientific data known as spectra, makes it the equivalent of two instruments in one. These dual techniques allow the Webb telescope to study distant objects in greater detail than ever before. Mary Estacion pays a visit to MIRI, being assembled at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxford, England.