Space is Super High Res? The Difference Between the Hubble and Webb Telescopes

Space is awesome. It’s got planets and nebulas and other cool space things. But all that stuff is really far away and hard to see.

Since 1990, Hubble has helped us take mind-blowing photos of space. We’ve been able to estimate the age of the universe and learn how planets and galaxies form.

But she needed a glow up. 

Webb is a major upgrade that lets us look even further into the cosmos to unlock the biggest mysteries of the universe. No pressure.

While Hubble orbits Earth, Webb is about 1.5 million kilometers away. Webb’s mirror is way bigger, so it has a larger light collecting area and field of view.

And while Hubble studies the universe at mostly optical and ultraviolet wavelengths, Webb does it in infrared. This rules because it lets us see objects that are even further away and hidden by space dust.

We can now see some of the earliest galaxies formed in the universe. Ones from 13 BILLION years ago. 

So Webb is basically a time machine. And that’s just the beginning. Who knows what amazing things it'll show us next? Thanks for scoping out the universe, team.