Scientists play role in successor to Hubble

Durham University scientists play role in successor to Hubble. Durham University astrophysicists are part of an international team driving a new instrument which will help provide a clearer view of our Universe. The Mid InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) - a camera which is so sensitive it could see a candle on one of Jupiter's moons - will form part of the James Web Space Telescope (JWST) which is planned to replace the iconic Hubble Space Telescope in 2018. Hubble is now more than 20 years old and the JWST will be six times larger that its predecessor. After ten years of work by over 200 engineers, MIRI has today (WEDNESDAY MAY 9) been declared ready for delivery by the European Space Agency and NASA. The MIRI Optical System, an instrument for the JWST, will eventually take up a position four times further away from the Earth than the Moon. It will now be shipped to NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center where it will be integrated with three other instruments and the JWST.