Astronomy & Space Exploration

Probably one of the last few things in this world I wouldn't sarcastically use a green smiley on.

It would be tragic if this failed.
 
Although maybe slightly off topic I wonder how close quantam computers are to being of use. It’s all very strange and concentrates on the quantam state of superposition but has the ability to have huge supercomputing power which could enable advances in spaces/health/science.

Anyone an expert here?
 
dal said:
Although maybe slightly off topic I wonder how close quantam computers are to being of use. It’s all very strange and concentrates on the quantam state of superposition but has the ability to have huge supercomputing power which could enable advances in spaces/health/science.

Anyone an expert here?
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https://www.preposterousuniverse.co...n-complexity-computation-and-quantum-gravity/

EDIT: Long story short, the main use of quantum computing will be in simulating quantum systems (i.e. technically everything is a ‘quantum system’, but in particular ‘natural’ systems such as ‘biological’, ‘chemical’ - it’s going to be used to simulate compartments of ‘reality’ to a degree that classical computers can’t or require massive amounts of power to approach)
 
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Cheimoon said:
For anyone interested, Quanta Magazine published a VERY long article on the James Webb Space Telescope on Friday:

https://www.quantamagazine.org/why-nasas-james-webb-space-telescope-matters-so-much-20211203/
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Great read, that. I didn't appreciate the exquisite engineering that was going into this thing. Motors precise enough to step half the length of a virus - I mean, wow. A mirror the size of a house that somehow has to folded into a space small enough to fit into an Ariane 5 rocket. The whole thing placed into an orbit 4 times the distance from the earth to the moon. Amazing really.

If they can make it work - big if given the list of things that have to go right, it'll be a modern wonder of the world.
 
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nickm said:
Great read, that. I didn't appreciate the exquisite engineering that was going into this thing. Motors precise enough to step half the length of a virus - I mean, wow. A mirror the size of a house that somehow has to folded into a space small enough to fit into an Ariane 5 rocket. The whole thing placed into an orbit 4 times the distance from the earth to the moon. Amazing really.

If they can make it work - big if given the list of things that have to go right, it'll be a modern wonder of the world.
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The precision and ingenuity that goes into astronomy is absolutely amazing. I'm thinking also of those vessels that have managed to land on asteroids. It's an amazing feat of knowledge and calculation to get there at exactly the right time.
 
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Have a bad feeling something will either happen on launch or the damage suffered before launch will cripple it.
 
Just watched the Amazon William Shatner Doc.

The guy was so fat he barely lifted off the ground when he hit space :lol:
 
If this goes up in the condition Hubble went up in, it will be a complete failure. Unlike Hubble, you can't fix the JWST when it's in space. But I'm sure they've done everything they physically can to make it work. It's honestly a hell of an achievement no matter what happens from here on.
 
hungrywing said:
https://www.preposterousuniverse.co...n-complexity-computation-and-quantum-gravity/

EDIT: Long story short, the main use of quantum computing will be in simulating quantum systems (i.e. technically everything is a ‘quantum system’, but in particular ‘natural’ systems such as ‘biological’, ‘chemical’ - it’s going to be used to simulate compartments of ‘reality’ to a degree that classical computers can’t or require massive amounts of power to approach)
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And to create super intelligent robots surely
 
nimic said:
If this goes up in the condition Hubble went up in, it will be a complete failure. Unlike Hubble, you can't fix the JWST when it's in space. But I'm sure they've done everything they physically can to make it work. It's honestly a hell of an achievement no matter what happens from here on.
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With Hubble they got lucky that the flaw in the mirror could be compensated by replacing the camera module. And of course , the existence of STS which could be used to perform the (fairly complex) repairs in orbit.
Of course even if the shuttle still existed today, it wouldn't be able to help since JWST orbit is 1 million miles away from earth. Actually it orbits the Sun, no the Earth :lol: Mad.
 
The Firestarter said:
With Hubble they got lucky that the flaw in the mirror could be compensated by replacing the camera module. And of course , the existence of STS which could be used to perform the (fairly complex) repairs in orbit.
Of course even if the shuttle still existed today, it wouldn't be able to help since JWST orbit is 1 million miles away from earth. Actually it orbits the Sun, no the Earth :lol: Mad.
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More on the orbit, for those interested:

The James Webb Space Telescope will not be in orbit around the Earth, like the Hubble Space Telescope is - it will actually orbit the Sun, 1.5 million kilometers (1 million miles) away from the Earth at what is called the second Lagrange point or L2. What is special about this orbit is that it lets the telescope stay in line with the Earth as it moves around the Sun. This allows the satellite's large sunshield to protect the telescope from the light and heat of the Sun and Earth (and Moon).
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rcoobc said:
I will not get excited until it's safely in orbit
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It will be placed in lagrange 2 orbit (4 x times the distance the earth is from the moon) so that may take a while to get to that distance.Then it's the wait for two weeks while it unfolds. If anything is wrong with the mirror ala hubble launch then tough. Cant do anything as we can get out to that distance to service it.
 
dinostar77 said:
It will be placed in lagrange 2 orbit (4 x times the distance the earth is from the moon) so that may take a while to get to that distance.Then it's the wait for two weeks while it unfolds. If anything is wrong with the mirror ala hubble launch then tough. Cant do anything as we can get out to that distance to service it.
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don't think the scientists will be able to breathe a sigh of relief for at least six months when finally the passive cooling and the calibration should finish, and actual research can start.
 
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