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NASA has again delayed the launch of its next-generation space observatory, known as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the space agency announced today. The telescope now has a new launch date of March 30th, 2021. It's the second delay to the project's timeline this year, and the third in the last nine months.
"We're all disappointed that the culmination of Webb and its launch is taking longer than expected, but we're creating something new here. We're dealing with cutting edge technology to perform an unprecedented mission, and I know that our teams are working hard and will successfully overcome the challenges," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a video statement. "In space we always have to look at the long term, and sometimes the complexities of our missions don't come together as soon as we wish. But we learn, we move ahead, and ultimately we succeed."
NASA pushed the launch of JWST, which is viewed as a more powerful successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, from 2019 to 2020 in March of this year. At the same time the space agency also convened an independent review board to assess the future of the project, which is running the risk of blowing by an $8 billion cost cap set by NASA in 2011. Going beyond that cost cap would mean that Congress has to reauthorize the program.
The NYT also reports an increase in mission cost (archive), which could have a negative impact on WFIRST or other missions:
NASA announced on Wednesday that the James Webb Space Telescope, once scheduled to be launched into orbit around the sun this fall, will take three more years and another billion dollars to complete. A report delivered to NASA by an independent review board estimated that the cost of the troubled Webb telescope would now be $9.66 billion, and that it would not be ready to launch until March 30, 2021.
[...] The new report means that NASA will surely need another $837 million and exceed that cap. Congress will have to reauthorize the telescope at a cost yet to be determined to other missions. Among the missions that could be threatened, astronomers say, is an ambitious space telescope called WFirst to study dark energy and hunt exoplanets.
The positive spin on this is that there will be more targets for it to look at (such as exoplanets and solar system objects) by the time it becomes operational.
Also at NASASpaceFlight and Engadget.
I need new ways to write this headline:
Previously: Launch of James Webb Space Telescope Delayed to Spring 2019
WFIRST Space Observatory Could be Scaled Back Due to Costs
Launch of James Webb Space Telescope Could be Further Delayed
JWST: Too Big to Fail?
Trump Administration Budget Proposal Would Cancel WFIRST
GAO: James Webb Space Telescope Launch Date Likely Will be Delayed (Again)
Launch of James Webb Space Telescope Delayed to May 2020, Could Exceed Budget Cap
NASA Announces JWST Independent Review Board Members
Screws and Washers Have Fallen Off JWST Amid Testing and Independent Review
House Spending Bill Offers NASA More Money Than the Agency or Administration Wanted
(Score: 2) by frojack on Thursday June 28 2018, @03:29PM (2 children)
At this cost and after this delay you have to wonder what making a second one would cost.
If the tooling is still active, the actual cost of building a second may be way less than expected.
(That's how we ended up with TWO Spirit Rovers on mars.)
Its getting so expensive, nobody will want to launch it, on the off chance the rocket goes boom.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday June 28 2018, @06:05PM (1 child)
> Its getting so expensive, nobody will want to launch it, on the off chance the rocket goes boom.
Ariane V was set to launch it even when the $5B cost made it impossible to insure. $10B doesn't make a difference at this point. Launch is free already.
You put the one-of-a-kind thing on the most reliable launcher which can handle the mission, and head to $church and $pray. That's pretty much SOP in that realm. You just hope that fewer people are praying that it goes boom before their part of the design gets a chance to fail.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @11:32PM
The thing I miss the least about the aerospace industry. Too many late night/early morning puke sessions.
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Thursday June 28 2018, @03:33PM (2 children)
It's becoming increasingly obvious NASA can't do this kind of thing anymore. Maybe the way forward is to cancel the program and sell what they have to private investors. I can picture Elon putting a fake eyepiece on it and launching it with another mannikin looking through it.
Probably won't happen though. I may be a lowly software engineer but even I understand the differences in skill sets between big-ass rockets and big-ass telescopes.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday June 28 2018, @03:42PM (1 child)
Northrop Grumman is building the telescope.
http://www.northropgrumman.com/MediaResources/MediaKits/JWST/Home.aspx [northropgrumman.com]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Thursday June 28 2018, @04:06PM
Yeah, but NASA is managing it and filling wheelbarrows of money. Let NG take it under their own wing, sell ads on the outside of it, sell off the naming rights, and convince Elon a free launch is worth the publicity.
Or hell, hang their heads in shame and finish the thing on their own dime.
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @03:39PM
What'll happen first? Star Citizen releasing or JWST launching?
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @03:53PM (2 children)
The LHC cost $4.75 to build. Finding the Higgs Boson brought that up to $13B.
The ISS cost ~$100B.
The Panama canal was $16B.
Hoover dam $0.8B
Apollo program ~$120B.
NASA annual budget $20.7B
Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station $13.5B
(Score: 4, Funny) by Gaaark on Thursday June 28 2018, @04:33PM
Condoms: $12.00ish
Pulling out: priceless
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 5, Insightful) by takyon on Thursday June 28 2018, @05:09PM
(I assume that takes into account the expensive Space Shuttle servicing missions and then some light operational costs. It would be funny if JWST's ultimate cost came under Hubble's, but it seems completely impossible at this point.)
I'd argue that the Hubble's discoveries (continuing to this day) have been more important than finding the Higgs and other fast-decaying particles. And many of its discoveries have had implications for physics (nailing down the age of the universe, determining that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, finding black holes at the center of galaxies, affirming the cosmological principle with the Hubble Deep Fields, etc.).
JWST improves on Hubble in several ways, but it's likely to have a much shorter lifetime than Hubble.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @04:01PM (6 children)
What is the reason for the delays? Wikipedia even has an entire section on it that explains nothing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Webb_Space_Telescope#Cost_and_schedule_issues [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @04:04PM (1 child)
Searching more:
https://www.firstpost.com/tech/science/human-technical-errors-cause-fresh-delay-in-launch-of-james-webb-telescope-4618051.html [firstpost.com]
This sounds like a scam.
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Thursday June 28 2018, @04:09PM
"excessive optimism" == "Oh shit, if we tell them what it's really gonna cost and how long it will take there's no way we'll get our wheelbarrows full of money".
When the dust settled America realized it was saved by a porn star.
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Thursday June 28 2018, @05:13PM (1 child)
Just recently, there was this:
Screws and Washers Have Fallen Off JWST Amid Testing and Independent Review [soylentnews.org]
and before that:
Launch of James Webb Space Telescope Delayed to May 2020, Could Exceed Budget Cap [soylentnews.org]
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @07:07PM
There is new info on the screws:
Link [spaceflightnow.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @08:44PM (1 child)
Ultimately? It's a cost-plus contract.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 28 2018, @11:35PM
+11 insightful