Q&A with John Mather on the James Webb Space Telescope (#382)

The James Webb Space Telescope is a monumental step forward in our pursuit of understanding the Universe and its origins. Here today, to answer the most frequently asked questions about the telescope, is the senior project scientist himself, John Cromwell Mather! 

John is an astrophysicist and cosmologist of the highest rank. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on the Cosmic Background Explorer Satellite COBE along with his colleague George Smoot. Now, he’s exploring the early Universe via the JWST. 

Tune in!

Key Takeaways:

00:00:00 Intro 

00:01:13 James Webb Space Telescope 

00:04:16 Why are people so fascinated with space exploration? 

00:07:07 Does Webb have the potential to see small rocky planets close to us?

00:09:45 Can Webb rule out or comment on the uniformity of the universe? 

00:12:14 Will the TRAPPIST-1 system be viewed by Webb?

00:14:39 Will future projects self-assemble and self-replicate?

00:15:56 Can we look at Europa? 

00:20:53 Rapid fire questions 

00:24:30 Advice for aspiring students 

00:25:24 Outro

—

Additional resources: 

➡️ Learn more about John Mather: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2006/mather/biographical/

➡️ Follow me on your favorite platforms:

✖️ Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrBrianKeating