Webb has been installed onto the Ariane 5 rocket in preparation for launch at 7:20 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday, December 25, 2021. We asked Amber Straughn, Webb deputy project scientist for communications, to tell us how people can watch the launch live online – and how to join the worldwide virtual Webb launch watch party: By Jonathan Gardner, Webb deputy senior project scientist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center The launch broadcast will include exciting scenes from the launch site in Kourou (naturally!), along with commentary from mission experts from both NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and the Mission Operations Center at the Space Telescope Science Institute. In the program you can also expect to see extraordinary video sequences showing construction of the telescope, in-person presentations about key technology, and cutting-edge animations depicting how it will unfold once it gets to space. Tune in to see an exciting new way to learn about the mission science and engineering. There might even be a launch event near you. After the broadcast is over, follow the progress of commissioning by keeping an eye on our website and social media (Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram), and of course this blog. We will have almost-daily updates here for the first couple of weeks post-launch, and then will go back to a roughly weekly cadence for technical updates. But you don’t have to wait until launch day to join in on the excitement. Check out the Journey to Space YouTube series, the Elements YouTube series, and if you are the creative type, submit art for our #UnfoldTheUniverse challenge. Find out even more “Need to Know” information here! I personally cannot believe the day is almost here. I’m so very excited for launch! —Amber Straughn, Webb deputy project scientist for communications, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center And Alexandra Lockwood, project scientist for Webb science communications, Space Telescope Science Institute
