NASA has unveiled the first “selfie” that the James Webb Telescope has captured after its launch into orbit.
The image that was unveiled on Friday shows the 18 segments making up the telescope’s main mirror and images of a nondescript star,CBS News reported.
“This amazing telescope has not only spread its wings, but it has now opened its eyes,” Lee Feinberg told CBS. Feinberg is the optical telescope element manager for the James Webb Space Telescope at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
The telescope’s massive main mirror is made up of 18 hexagonal segments. According to Feinberg, NASA scientists are in the process of adjusting the tilt of each one to align the multiple reflections of target stars into a single beam, which he describes as a “tedious process” in order, CBS reported.
Over the next few months, the telescope will synchronize its mirrors as it photographs images that experts said have never been seen before, the news outlet reported.
Construction on The James Webb Telescope started in 2004 and has been a $13 billion investment, according to reports.
After decades of preparation, the telescope was launched on Christmas Day. It was launched from the European Space Agency’s launch site in Kourou, a town in French Guiana. An Ariane 5 rocket was used as the launch vehicle,CBS News previously reported.
The mission of the telescope is to capture images of the first stars and galaxies going back billion of years, so scientists have a better understanding of space, a report said.