Teledyne Lauds NASA for Successful Launch of James Webb Space Telescope

Multi-industry company Teledyne Technologies has lauded NASA and its partners, the European and Canadian space agencies, on the successful launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. It had provided 15 extremely sensitive H2RG infrared detectors that are used in three of the four science instruments of JWST, Teledyne said Tuesday.

Robert Mehrabian, chairman, president and CEO of Teledyne, said his company is proud to have provided the detectors that will essentially serve as the “eyes” of groundbreaking astronomy and astrophysics missions. He added that, for decades, scientists have been using the company’s ground-based and space-based detectors to look outward to our solar system, to the stars and exoplanets of the Milky Way.

The equipment Teledyne provided the Webb telescope concentrates solely on infrared imaging and spectroscopy. This is because the JWST will try to explore the very distant universe, for which ultraviolet and visible emissions have been stretched by the expansion of the universe into infrared wavelengths, a process known as redshift. Teledyne’s infrared detectors will enable NASA’s new space telescope to observe the first stars and galaxies, allowing scientists to understand the early evolution of the universe.

In a statement, Teledyne said that 10 of its near-infrared cameras onboard the space telescope will study the structure and morphology of the universe. Three of its fine guidance sensors will be used to point and stabilize the telescope. Two detectors in near-infrared spectrograph will reveal information about the chemical composition, temperature and velocity of what the JWST observes.

Meanwhile, Teledyne said it recently delivered the infrared detectors for the Roman Space Telescope, which NASA is scheduled to launch in 2027.