Jackie Townsend

speaker

77 appearances 1 recordings 1 series first heard Jul 2026 last heard 17 Jul

Jackie Townsend’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.

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Science Friday · A space telescope launch + Alvin submersible check-up · 17 Jul 2026 podcast

So, yes, we got the mirror and several associated parts to go with it, but it was not designed to operate, say, cold enough to make infrared science easy.

It wasn't designed to reflect exactly at the wavelengths that we were planning to make our observations.

So it was useful to get this, but we also had to strip it down, repolish it, figure it to our needs.

So it was a lot of work.

However, once we knew we were going to be receiving this mirror, it really necked down the trade space

So we could make really good decisions early about how we were going to design and build this telescope.

If we had not received that, we might have gone longer before we necked down and made the tough choices to say, this is what this observatory is going to do, and this is how we're going to build it.

Is it stressful to launch the telescope?

Like, what's that like for you?

So I have had the privilege of working a couple of the Hubble servicing missions in the past.

And I can tell you it is utterly thrilling that moment and also a little bit terrifying because launching is among the biggest risks that we take.

So it is it is it is it's like a roller coaster, right?

It's thrilling and terrifying and exciting and wonderful and amazing all at the same time.

So the transition into science operations happens probably at the first of the calendar year.

So the first images will likely come down in December.

And then we transition into real-time science data being downlinked and made available to the public daily in January.

Okay.

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