Who is James Webb, after whom NASA named its new space telescope?

NASA on Tuesday revealed the clearest deep space image of the early universe ever, thanks to its groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The image, which possibly shows the universe from as far back as 13 billion years ago, was the first stunning image from JWST, with many more on the way.

Released by US President Joe Biden from the White House, the image shows thousands of stars and galaxies, as well as nebulas. To know more about the photograph, READ | Most unique picture of the universe ever captured by NASA's James Webb Telescope

Sneak a peek at the deepest & sharpest infrared image of the early universe ever taken — all in a day’s work for the Webb telescope. (Literally, capturing it took less than a day!) This is Webb’s first image released as we begin to #UnfoldTheUniverse: https://t.co/tlougFWg8B pic.twitter.com/Y7ebmQwT7j

— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) July 11, 2022

Taking over from its predecessor Hubble Space Telescope (HST), which was named after the legendary astronomer Edwin Hubble, the JWST is named after James Edwin Webb, one of the biggest pillars of NASA’s success and early fame in space missions.

Who was James E Webb, after whom NASA named its new space telescope?

Unlike Hubble, James Webb was not an astronomer or scientist. Instead, he was a government official whose name is synonymous with the Apollo Moon missions. He was the second administrator of NASA between 1961-1968, when the US space agency was in its fledgling state.

It is widely believed by many that Webb did more for science than any other government official. Hence, NASA decided to give him the honour of having one of its most important inventions being named after him.

Despite the politicization of the plan to land a man on the moon, Webb is said to have believed that the mission was more than just a space race. His vision for NASA led to some groundbreaking research that the agency says remains unparalleled till today.

Among the highlights of his tenure at NASA were development of robotic spacecraft that went to the Moon to understand the environment before astronauts could be sent. NASA also sent scientific probes to Mars and Venus bringing back the first images of the unusual landscapes on the neighbouring planets. Interestingly, Webb had pitched for a major space telescope as early as 1965.

He retired months before the first man landed on the Moon in July 1969. By that time, over 75 space missions had been launched by NASA to study planets, sun, stars and galaxies, building foundations for the most successful period of astronomical discoveries.  He is also credited with enhancing the role of scientists in key areas, giving them greater control over mission aspects.

“It is fitting that Hubble's successor be named in honor of James Webb. Thanks to his efforts, we got our first glimpses at the dramatic landscape of outer space. He took our nation on its first voyages of exploration, turning our imagination into reality. Indeed, he laid the foundations at NASA for one of the most successful periods of astronomical discovery. As a result, we're rewriting the textbooks today with the help of the Hubble Space Telescope , the Chandra X-ray Observatory , and the James Webb Telescope,” NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe had said while announcing the next generation space telescope’s name.