The European Space Agency (Esa), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) and the Canadian Space Agency confirm that the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope should take place no earlier than December 22th. This is an important announcement after last week the mission seemed to be at risk due to an anomaly that occurred during the preparation of the launch site in Kourou, French Guyana. 

The astronomical instrument will be launched on a European-built Ariane 5 launch rocket. The $10 billion telescope is equipped with 20 small thrusters that will allow it to maneuver in orbit. James Webb will have to travel about 1.5 million miles from Earth to the Lagrange L2 observation point. Scientists will use it to understand how the first galaxies and the universe were formed. 

The anticipation is great. Now the technicians are just hoping that no other mishaps will occur. The last in order of time was in mid-November and concerned the attachment of the telescope to the upper stage of the Ariane 5 launch rocket, which caused a vibration throughout the astronomical instrument. After verification, the engineers concluded that the telescope had not been damaged and that the mission could continue.