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NASA's next generation space telescope, which is to replace Hubble, will be named after James E. Webb, the administrator of NASA during the Apollo missions. The next generation space telescope will be placed at the Lagrange 2 point where the Earth and Sun's gravity cancel each other out. The L2 point is 1.5 million kilometres from Earth and where the Sun is permanently eclipsed by the Earth. Its position and shielding will allow the James Webb Telescope to remain cold which will increase its sensitivity to infrared. Although the telescope will primarily be used to study distant objects such as galaxies in detail it may also be used to study Kuiper Belt Objects and other small bodies including asteroids.
Present NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe said "It is fitting that Hubble's successor be named in honour of James Webb. Thanks to his efforts, we got our first glimpses at the dramatic landscapes of outer space. He took our nation on its first voyages of exploration, turning our imagination into reality. Indeed, he laid the foundations at NASA for one of the most successful periods of astronomical discovery." The $824.8 million James Webb Space Telescope will be launched in 2010 and is being built by the TRW company of California.
More info: James Webb Space Telescope
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