Rossin Connection
“They nailed it.” Engineering the James Webb Space Telescope
The James Webb Space Telescope launched into orbit on Christmas Day 2021. It’s the largest, most powerful space science telescope that has ever been built. It will enable us to look more than 13 billion years back in time, helping us answer questions like, Where do we come from? and Are we alone? It took 20 years, thousands of technicians, scientists, and engineers, and 40 million hours to build. One of those engineers is Lehigh alum Scott Willoughby. He graduated with a degree in electrical engineering in 1989, and today he’s the vice president and program manager for the James Webb Space Telescope program at Northrop Grumman. In this episode, he explains why this mission an Apollo moment for science, what makes this telescope a singular marvel of engineering, and how we’re already benefiting from Webb’s development here on earth.
The James Webb Space Telescope launched into orbit on Christmas Day 2021. It’s the largest, most powerful space science telescope that has ever been built. It will enable us to look more than 13 billion years back in time, helping us answer questions like, Where do we come from? and Are we alone? It took 20 years, thousands of technicians, scientists, and engineers, and 40 million hours to build. One of those engineers is Lehigh alum Scott Willoughby. He graduated with a degree in electrical engineering in 1989, and today he’s the vice president and program manager for the James Webb Space Telescope program at Northrop Grumman. In this episode, he explains why this mission an Apollo moment for science, what makes this telescope a singular marvel of engineering, and how we’re already benefiting from Webb’s development here on earth.