NASA/Chris GunnA slowdown in integration and testing caused by the global pandemic is expected to lead to a delayed launch for NASA’s long-awaited James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the space agency said today. It now seems that the March 2021 launch date will be delayed. This Is The $10 Billion ReasonIt comes a day after this announcement on the website of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)—the science operations center for the JWST—in which it further delayed the deadline for science proposals for the observatory’s first phase. For NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to fit into an Ariane V rocket for launch, it must fold up. It’s named after James E. Webb, NASA’s administrator during a portion of the Apollo era.

Source: Forbes June 02, 2020 16:29 UTC