Performance of NIRCam on JWST in Flight

2023/02/01 by Marcia Rieke, Marcia J. Rieke, Douglas M. Kelly +71 · 378 citations
Computer Science · Engineering · #Advanced SAR Imaging Techniques #Astrobiology #Environmental science #Physics #Radar Systems and Signal Processing #Target Tracking and Data Fusion in Sensor Networks

paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/1538-3873/acac53

published in Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 135(1044), 028001 (Institute of Physics)

openalex publication_date 2023/02/01 · openalex created_date 2023/02/14 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/04

Abstract

Abstract The Near Infrared Camera for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is delivering the imagery that astronomers have hoped for ever since JWST was proposed back in the 1990s. In the Commissioning Period that extended from right after launch to early 2022 July, NIRCam has been subjected to a number of performance tests and operational checks. The camera is exceeding prelaunch expectations in virtually all areas, with very few surprises discovered in flight. NIRCam also delivered the imagery needed by the Wavefront Sensing Team for use in aligning the telescope mirror segments.

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