This “something” is Webb’s near-infrared spectrometer (NIRSpec), which is one of the telescope’s four instruments. Recently aligned with Webb’s primary mirror, the NIRSpec is said to enhance the telescope’s capabilities as it is one hundred times more powerful than a similar instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. Interestingly, this instrument is so powerful that it can observe a hundred objects at once.
Observation of the universe through spectroscopy
A contribution from the European Space Agency (ESA), NIRSpec will describe the universe in detail through spectroscopy. It is worth mentioning here that since NIRSpec is a spectrograph, it would not provide images of the universe and this work has been assigned to the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) and the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). NIRSpec’s job would be to split incoming light into individual elements of the light spectrum, according to the scientists.
Αντικ Multi-object spectroscopy uses a micro-aperture device ⏸️⏸️⏸️ to capture single spectra of up to 100 objects / locations in space simultaneously, very effective for observing distant and dim targets, such as ancient galaxies, that require hours of observation – ESA Webb Telescope (@ESA_Webb) March 5, 2022 The process of spectroscopy is vital as different components of the spectrum reflect the light-absorbing properties and chemical composition of the objects being imaged, such as planets, stars and galaxies. Interestingly, scientists can even determine the temperature and mass of an object by analyzing the spectrum of an object. “Scientifically, spectra are extremely valuable,” Bunker told Space.com. “There is a lot of information encoded in them. We can map how chemical elements accumulate in galaxies, but also determine the distance and properties of galaxies, such as the rate at which they convert their gas into stars.” ESA says that since NIRSpec has to examine thousands of galaxies in the short operating period of just five years, its ability to observe hundreds of objects at once would be very useful. The Webb, which launched on December 25, is currently located at the second Lagrange point, about 15 lakh kilometers from Earth, and will be fully operational in the coming months.
