NASA is inching forward with its plans to launch a successor to the Hubble space telescope. In an unprecedented step, NASA tested a giant 21-foot mirror on its James Webb space telescope that is designed to observe a range of frequencies not currently seen by Hubble. In the test, NASA simulated some of the conditions the telescope will encounter in space, including zero-gravity, with the mirror - which is actually 18 hexagonal mirrors segments - fully unfurled. The telescope will most likely, according to the GAO, launch about six months later in July of 2021. The instrument, billed as a successor to NASA's Hubble Telescope, has been in development for more than a decade and has until recently alluded firm launch dates.

Source: Daily Mail April 02, 2020 19:42 UTC