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New NASA Telescope Reveals Dying Star And Dancing Galaxies: Photos

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope captures the deepest and sharpest images yet of thousands of galaxies dating back to the Big Bang.

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This image released by NASA Tuesday shows the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the James Webb Space Telescope, it reveals previously obscured areas of star birth, according to NASA.
This image released by NASA Tuesday shows the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the James Webb Space Telescope, it reveals previously obscured areas of star birth, according to NASA. (NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP)

ACROSS AMERICA —This week, NASA released new images taken by itsJames Webb Space Telescope, a tool designed to look so far back that scientists will be able to get a glimpse of the dawn of the universe about 13.7 billion years ago.

It also was built to zoom in on closer cosmic objects, even our own solar system, with sharper focus.

By using the infrared light spectrum, the Webb Telescope will see past cosmic dust to reveal light from faraway corners of the universe, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Tuesday. When discussing a group of images showing black holes being devoured by the formation of stars, Nelson said that “every image is a new discovery and each will give humanity a view of the humanity that we’ve never seen before."

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According to AP, NASA views Webb as the successor to the highly successful Hubble Space Telescope.

President Joe Biden said the images sh0w "the oldest documented light in the history of the universe from 13 billion — let me say that again, 13 billion — years ago. … We can see possibilities no one has ever seen before. … We can go places no one has ever gone before.”

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An image of the galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 was captured by the James Webb Space Telescope, which is designed to peer back so far that scientists can get a glimpse of the dawn of the universe about 13.7 billion years ago and zoom in on closer cosmic objects, even our own solar system, with sharper focus. (NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP)

This image released Tuesday by NASA combines the capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope's two cameras to create a never-before-seen view of a star-forming region in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera and Mid-Infrared Instrument, this combined image reveals previously invisible areas of star birth. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP)
This newly released NASA image shows Stephan's Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies captured by the Webb Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument. (NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP)
Here is another image of the Stephan's Quintet, captured by the Webb Telescope's Near-Infrared Camera and Mid-Infrared Instrument. This mosaic was constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files, according to NASA. (NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP)
This image released by NASA on Tuesday shows the Southern Ring Nebula for the first time in mid-infrared light. It is a hot, dense white dwarf star, according to NASA. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP)
This image shows the bright star at the center of NGC 3132, the Southern Ring Nebula, for the first time in near-infrared light. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP)
This combination of images shows a side-by-side comparison of observations of the Southern Ring Nebula in near-infrared light, at left, and mid-infrared light, at right, from the Webb Telescope. (NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP)
President Joe Biden listens during a briefing from NASA officials about the first images from the Webb Space Telescope, the highest-resolution images of the infrared universe ever captured, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex on Monday in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
President Joe Biden listens during a briefing from NASA officials about the first images from the Webb Space Telescope in the South Court Auditorium on the White House complex on Monday. On screen are NASA Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate Thomas Zurbuchen (top) Deputy Director of the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) Nancy Levenson, and NASA James Webb Space Telescope Program Director Greg Robinson (bottom). (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
NASA administrator Bill Nelson speaks during an event with President Joe Biden about the first images on Monday in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
This 2015 artist's rendering provided by Northrop Grumman shows the James Webb Space Telescope. The telescope is designed to peer back so far that scientists will get a glimpse of the dawn of the universe about 13.7 billion years ago and zoom in on closer cosmic objects, even our own solar system, with sharper focus. (Northrop Grumman/NASA via AP, File)
In this April 13, 2017, photo, technicians lift the mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope using a crane at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. (Laura Betz/NASA via AP, File)
This March 5, 2020, photo shows the main mirror assembly of the James Webb Space Telescope during testing at a Northrop Grumman facility in Redondo Beach, California. (Chris Gunn/NASA via AP, File)

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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