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Webb Telescope Observing Side and Sun-facing Side

Diagram of the James Webb Space Telescope’s observing side, where its primary mirror, secondary mirror, and science instrument modules reside, and sun-facing side, where its sunshield, momentum trim tab, solar panel array, and spacecraft bus reside.
A tennis court-sized sunshield protects the Webb telescope from external sources of light and heat in order to be able to detect faint heat signals from very distant objects. This labeled diagram of the Webb telescope illustrates both the observing side and the sun-facing side of the observatory.
  • Release Date
    May 31, 2018
  • Credit
    Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, Christine Klicka (STScI)

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Last Updated
Aug 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Image Credit

NASA, ESA, CSA, Christine Klicka (STScI)

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