James Webb Space Telescope

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/james-webb-space-telescope

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the operational temperature?Below -223 degrees Celsius (-369 degrees Fahrenheit) to detect faint infrared signals
2. How does the telescope stay so cold?It has a five‑layer sunshield the size of a tennis court. Each layer is as thin as a human hair and keeps the telescope below –223 °C so it can see faint infrared light.
3. Why does the telescope have a 6.5‑meter mirror?A bigger mirror lets the telescope collect more light from very distant stars and galaxies. Its 6.5‑meter mirror is larger than Hubble’s 2.4‑meter mirror.

Epoch of Reionization: A period in the early universe when ultraviolet photons from the first stars and galaxies ionized neutral hydrogen atoms.
Spectroscopy: The study of the interaction between matter and electromagnetic radiation, used to determine the composition and properties of celestial objects.
Biosignature: A substance or characteristic that provides evidence of past or present life.