Testing is the spacecraft equivalent of @NASA_Astronauts training. But how does a space telescope like #NASAWebb “train” for its launch journey?
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#NASAWebb went through its first comprehensive systems test as a fully connected telescope earlier this year.
Each line of code for Webb was tested & retested as different lines were combined into larger software components: https://go.nasa.gov/2Zoum5e pic.twitter.com/2fEvmHcYBL
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To simulate that level of extreme noise, Webb’s complete structure was recently blasted with powerful sound waves. 
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4) After launch, #NASAWebb will unfold in a series of steps, beginning with the solar array. (Without recharging, the telescope’s battery lasts only a few hours!) To mimic zero-gravity conditions, we tested the solar array by hanging it sideways. 
https://go.nasa.gov/30IQgAh pic.twitter.com/wdu0qUVSwI
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5) We also verified that all 5 layers of
#NASAWebb’s sunshield will be able to slowly unfurl like a giant kite in space.
The sunshield is critical for protecting the telescope's sensitive mirrors & instruments from light and heat: https://go.nasa.gov/2J9pfgM pic.twitter.com/h5h17p94cCShow this thread -
6) Next in
#NASAWebb's unfolding sequence is the secondary mirror, which helps send light from the primary mirror to the scientific instruments. A support structure will extend to place the secondary mirror out in front of the primary mirror, as shown. https://go.nasa.gov/2M4BAWG pic.twitter.com/WLuQuWLl7AShow this thread -
7) Then the primary mirror will unfold its "wings" so that all 18 hexagonal segments are in view. For all of these deployment tests, the team used cables, pulleys & weights to simulate the weightlessness of space: https://go.nasa.gov/3lpPZuc pic.twitter.com/CSSc01X3eF
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8) In this room, we made sure that
#NASAWebb's instruments wouldn’t interfere with the electromagnetic environment of the spacecraft. This way, we’ll know we’re seeing actual objects in space (not blips caused by interference) when we get images back. https://go.nasa.gov/3ns2JCt pic.twitter.com/WsqLo0NJ7x
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9) In the first 6 hours after launch,
#NASAWebb will need to switch between communication networks & stations around the world.
We ran through these complex procedures, plus we used special equipment to simulate how we’ll “talk” to Webb in space: https://go.nasa.gov/3ntB9od pic.twitter.com/hgKwJeR6TN
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10) We tested the 2 halves of
#NASAWebb in different thermal vacuum chambers at@northropgrumman &@NASA_Johnson. These huge chambers can match the vacuum of space and be cooled to the temperatures (-387 F, or -232.8 C) at which Webb needs to operate!
https://go.nasa.gov/2AfuJnt pic.twitter.com/9SDlPsEbHc
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#NASAWebb also spent time at@NASA_Johnson getting its “eyes” checked, or verifying that light would travel correctly through its optical system. We used test hardware that acted as a source of artificial starlight.
https://go.nasa.gov/2fj6TxZ pic.twitter.com/PpzAv6WnadShow this thread -
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#NASAWebb is now in its final suite of testing before being shipped to its launch location. Up next: some more deployment testing, plus another full systems evaluation. For more on Webb’s testing journey, read our Tumblr: https://nasa.tumblr.com/post/631437243045822464/10-ways-the-webb-telescope-trains-for-space …pic.twitter.com/4xdKRXTkO9
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Make sure those lenses work this time don't make the same mistake you made on the Hubble
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