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Shortly after 10 am EST on Dec. 26, the Webb team began the process of releasing the gimbaled antenna assembly, or GAA, which includes Webb's high-data-rate dish antenna. This antenna will be used to send at least 28.6 Gbytes of science data down from the observatory, twice a day. The team has now released and …

At 7:50 pm EST, Webb's first mid-course correction burn began. It lasted 65 minutes and is now complete. This burn is one of two milestones that are time critical — the first was the solar array deployment, which happened shortly after launch. This burn adjusts Webb's trajectory toward the second Lagrange point, commonly known as L2. After launch, Webb needs to make its own mid-course thrust correction maneuvers to get to its orbit. …

The James Webb Space Telescope is on its way! The mission launched on an Ariane 5 rocket at 7:20 a.m. EST on Saturday, Dec. 25. Jane Rigby, the operations project scientist for Webb at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, told us what it was like to be supporting the launch from the …

The James Webb Space Telescope is safely in space, powered on and communicating with ground controllers. Webb continues in coast phase, and is now oriented correctly with respect to the Sun. The six reaction wheels of the spacecraft's attitude control system have been powered on, and they are now responsible for keeping the spacecraft pointing …

At approximately 30 minutes after launch, Webb's solar array began to open up. It is now fully deployed and we have confirmed that the spacecraft is power positive.

The Ariane 5 upper stage brought the James Webb Space Telescope up to a speed of approximately 22 thousand miles per hour – headed for its final orbit around the second Lagrange point, commonly known as L2. The upper stage engine has now cut off and the spacecraft has separated. An extra battery on the …

After exhausting all its fuel and bringing Webb to speeds of approximately 16 thousand miles per hour, the main stage engine of the Ariane 5 has shut down and been jettisoned. The upper stage engine has ignited. It will burn for approximately 16 minutes, beginning Webb on its journey to its final orbit around the …

Telemetry from the James Webb Space Telescope has successfully been received at the Jupiter Control Center at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. A little more than two minutes after launch, the two solid rocket boosters on the Ariane 5 separated from the vehicle and then fell back into the ocean. Next, the fairing — which …

The boosters have ignited, and we have liftoff! The Ariane 5 launcher carrying NASA's James Webb Space Telescope launched into space at 7:20 am EST from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.

Webb has completed internal checks. All ground stations and the spacecraft are go for launch. Spacecraft and launch engineers at the Jupiter Control Center at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana and at the Mission Operations Center at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, have confirmed that Webb is on internal battery and is …