Recent accomplishments of JWST !

JWST has grabbed our attention ever since its launch on December 2021.  And astonishingly, we have started receiving data by July. As a test, JWST was focused on a distant exoplanet wasp-39b revolving around a relatively stable star wasp-39 (near the Virgo constellation). The plan was to use a 4-different set of instruments to evaluate the atmosphere of wasp-39b by spectroscopic methods. But during the data evaluation, researchers noticed unusual spikes in data and found SO2(Sulphur Dioxide), which was not understood by standard prediction models. This mystery was finally resolved by appreciating the presence of some photochemical reaction in its atmosphere.

By this potential of JWST, we could soon find some planet like earth having complex photochemical reactions in the atmosphere (like our planet).

For detailed information regarding this:

• https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/nasa-s-webb-reveals-an-exoplanet-atmosphere-as-never-seen-before
• https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2022-11-23-new-data-james-webb-space-telescope-reveals-exoplanet-atmosphere-never-seen