1 00:00:01,100 --> 00:00:03,133 ♪ ♪ 2 00:00:05,433 --> 00:00:10,566 NARRATOR: The James Webb Space Telescope is on a mission to unlock 3 00:00:10,566 --> 00:00:12,866 the secrets of the cosmos. 4 00:00:12,866 --> 00:00:14,700 AARON EVANS: Think about it as a telescope 5 00:00:14,700 --> 00:00:17,800 that enables us to see the hidden universe. 6 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,133 NARRATOR: Searching for the chemical building blocks of life 7 00:00:20,133 --> 00:00:22,066 beyond Earth. 8 00:00:22,066 --> 00:00:25,500 HEIDI HAMMEL: Is there life on an Earth-like planet around a sun-like star? 9 00:00:25,500 --> 00:00:29,333 Is there an Earth 2.0 out there? 10 00:00:29,333 --> 00:00:33,533 NARRATOR: Hunting for clues to unravel the mystery 11 00:00:33,533 --> 00:00:34,733 of black holes. 12 00:00:34,733 --> 00:00:35,766 LEE ARMUS: Where do they start growing? 13 00:00:35,766 --> 00:00:37,100 How bright do they get? 14 00:00:37,100 --> 00:00:38,700 NARRATOR: And probing deeper 15 00:00:38,700 --> 00:00:41,800 into our cosmic history than ever before. 16 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:44,100 AMBER STRAUGHN: We are reaching back to what we think 17 00:00:44,100 --> 00:00:47,333 is the first epoch of galaxies. 18 00:00:47,333 --> 00:00:48,533 And we've only just started. 19 00:00:48,533 --> 00:00:51,333 That's the craziest thing, right? 20 00:00:51,333 --> 00:00:55,000 NARRATOR: "New Eye on the Universe," right now, on "NOVA." 21 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:59,966 ♪ ♪ 22 00:01:17,166 --> 00:01:20,233 STRAUGHN: This telescope was designed to answer 23 00:01:20,233 --> 00:01:22,766 some of the biggest questions in astronomy today. 24 00:01:24,633 --> 00:01:27,833 Everything from detecting the very first galaxies 25 00:01:27,833 --> 00:01:29,966 that were born after the Big Bang... 26 00:01:32,066 --> 00:01:36,033 ...to looking at objects within our own solar system, 27 00:01:36,033 --> 00:01:38,433 and everything in space and time in between. 28 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,766 MATT MOUNTAIN: We're trying to tell the whole human story, 29 00:01:42,766 --> 00:01:47,900 from the beginning of the Big Bang right up to, 30 00:01:47,900 --> 00:01:51,000 did life emerge on another Earth-like planet 31 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:54,133 around another star like our sun? 32 00:01:54,133 --> 00:01:56,300 And that's a massive story. 33 00:01:56,300 --> 00:01:59,900 ♪ ♪ 34 00:01:59,900 --> 00:02:02,600 But I'm also, you know, got my ears pricked up 35 00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:04,200 for, what are we going to learn 36 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:06,900 that we didn't even know we were supposed to be looking for? 37 00:02:06,900 --> 00:02:09,566 ♪ ♪ 38 00:02:09,566 --> 00:02:12,433 NARRATOR: The James Webb Space Telescope, 39 00:02:12,433 --> 00:02:15,166 also known as JWST, 40 00:02:15,166 --> 00:02:19,866 is the largest, most complex space telescope 41 00:02:19,866 --> 00:02:21,633 ever built. 42 00:02:21,633 --> 00:02:23,600 Plagued with mishaps 43 00:02:23,600 --> 00:02:27,800 and cost overruns, it was decades in the making. 44 00:02:27,800 --> 00:02:29,266 HAKEEM OLUSEYI: We got to the point 45 00:02:29,266 --> 00:02:31,233 where we started thinking, is this thing ever going to fly? 46 00:02:31,233 --> 00:02:32,700 Right? Is it too complicated? 47 00:02:32,700 --> 00:02:36,466 NARRATOR: It was finally launched 48 00:02:36,466 --> 00:02:40,733 on December 25, 2021. 49 00:02:40,733 --> 00:02:43,400 ANNOUNCER: This will be humanity's last view 50 00:02:43,400 --> 00:02:45,200 of the James Webb Space Telescope 51 00:02:45,200 --> 00:02:47,000 as it moves to its workplace 52 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:50,433 about a million miles away from Earth. 53 00:02:50,433 --> 00:02:53,566 HAMMEL: JWST is an example of what 54 00:02:53,566 --> 00:02:56,100 people can do on a large scale. 55 00:02:56,100 --> 00:03:00,533 20,000 people around the world 56 00:03:00,533 --> 00:03:04,100 contributed to making this telescope exist. 57 00:03:08,066 --> 00:03:09,600 NARRATOR: Now researchers are taking 58 00:03:09,600 --> 00:03:13,700 their new telescope on a test drive. 59 00:03:13,700 --> 00:03:15,433 I mean, methane's always been a mystery, right? 60 00:03:15,433 --> 00:03:18,133 TIFFANY KATARIA: This is, like, our new souped-up convertible 61 00:03:18,133 --> 00:03:20,300 that we want to take out for many spins, 62 00:03:20,300 --> 00:03:22,733 multiple spins. (laughs) 63 00:03:22,733 --> 00:03:24,500 And, and really test its limits. 64 00:03:24,500 --> 00:03:26,266 Just look at that... 65 00:03:26,266 --> 00:03:27,866 ARMUS: There's a period where you have to feel it out. 66 00:03:27,866 --> 00:03:29,333 You've got to learn how to use it. 67 00:03:29,333 --> 00:03:31,733 And that's what we're doing. 68 00:03:31,733 --> 00:03:33,166 We had some idea of what we might, 69 00:03:33,166 --> 00:03:35,266 uh, be going to see in this galaxy. 70 00:03:35,266 --> 00:03:36,633 JANE RIGBY: So we're really trying to get up to speed 71 00:03:36,633 --> 00:03:38,700 so that we're not just driving the car, 72 00:03:38,700 --> 00:03:40,100 but we're really learning, 73 00:03:40,100 --> 00:03:42,000 how do you take the corners the best? 74 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:43,833 How do we, how do we optimize 75 00:03:43,833 --> 00:03:45,066 what we're doing here? 76 00:03:45,066 --> 00:03:48,100 (exclaiming) 77 00:03:48,100 --> 00:03:51,000 NARRATOR: This is a story of the ups... 78 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:52,566 (all toasting) 79 00:03:52,566 --> 00:03:54,066 NARRATOR: ...and downs... 80 00:03:54,066 --> 00:03:55,600 Uh-oh, I think I found an error. 81 00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:57,766 NARRATOR: ...of exploring the cosmos 82 00:03:57,766 --> 00:04:00,600 with a brand-new telescope... 83 00:04:00,600 --> 00:04:02,533 We're kind of the guinea pigs, 84 00:04:02,533 --> 00:04:04,100 uh, to, to show how this all works. 85 00:04:04,100 --> 00:04:05,433   It took me a while to figure it out... 86 00:04:05,433 --> 00:04:07,133 NARRATOR: ...pushing it to its limits. 87 00:04:07,133 --> 00:04:09,533 So this is on the surface. 88 00:04:09,533 --> 00:04:11,866 NARRATOR: In its very first chapter of exploration, 89 00:04:11,866 --> 00:04:14,033 researchers are finding out 90 00:04:14,033 --> 00:04:18,300 what their "New Eye on the Universe" can reveal. 91 00:04:22,266 --> 00:04:24,933 On July 12, 2022, 92 00:04:24,933 --> 00:04:27,366 the world finally got a look 93 00:04:27,366 --> 00:04:30,866 at JWST's first images. 94 00:04:31,866 --> 00:04:34,433 OLUSEYI: I was 95 00:04:34,433 --> 00:04:35,700 flabbergasted, right? 96 00:04:35,700 --> 00:04:37,466 It was better than I could have imagined. 97 00:04:37,466 --> 00:04:39,633   I knew they were going to be good, 98 00:04:39,633 --> 00:04:43,433 but I didn't think they were going to be that good. 99 00:04:43,433 --> 00:04:45,266 The thing that struck me was the amount of detail 100 00:04:45,266 --> 00:04:48,466 we were seeing in these images. 101 00:04:48,466 --> 00:04:49,933 MARTHA BOYER: It's sort of like putting glasses on 102 00:04:49,933 --> 00:04:51,200 for the first time, you know? 103 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:52,633 Everything is just, like, crystal-clear, 104 00:04:52,633 --> 00:04:56,733 and there's just so much to see. 105 00:04:56,733 --> 00:04:58,066 LEE FEINBERG: I guess my reaction was just 106 00:04:58,066 --> 00:04:59,933 a total sense of wonderment. 107 00:04:59,933 --> 00:05:02,766 You know, it's, like, sort of that feeling 108 00:05:02,766 --> 00:05:05,000 when you were a kid and you look up at the night sky, 109 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:06,700 and you just look out into the universe 110 00:05:06,700 --> 00:05:10,066 and you see all these stars and you wonder, 111 00:05:10,066 --> 00:05:13,833 like, how big is the universe and when did it all start? 112 00:05:13,833 --> 00:05:15,633 I felt that looking at those images. 113 00:05:15,633 --> 00:05:20,066 I just felt that sense of wonderment. 114 00:05:20,066 --> 00:05:23,100 NARRATOR: As the first batches of data and images pour in, 115 00:05:23,100 --> 00:05:25,566 scientists are hunting for new clues 116 00:05:25,566 --> 00:05:30,000 to some of our most profound questions. 117 00:05:30,000 --> 00:05:32,466 STRAUGHN: I study galaxies in my own research. 118 00:05:32,466 --> 00:05:35,066 And so I am really excited to see 119 00:05:35,066 --> 00:05:37,566 what that first epoch of galaxies 120 00:05:37,566 --> 00:05:39,000 to form after the Big Bang, 121 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:40,600 to see what those galaxies are like. 122 00:05:40,600 --> 00:05:42,500 But if I'm being honest, 123 00:05:42,500 --> 00:05:44,900 I think the most important question 124 00:05:44,900 --> 00:05:46,400 we have in astronomy, 125 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:48,666 or maybe even as a species is, 126 00:05:48,666 --> 00:05:49,866 is there life out there? 127 00:05:49,866 --> 00:05:56,533 ♪ ♪ 128 00:05:56,533 --> 00:05:57,666 NÉSTOR ESPINOZA: "Are we alone?" 129 00:05:57,666 --> 00:05:59,600 is definitely one of the key questions 130 00:05:59,600 --> 00:06:02,866 that I would love to answer. 131 00:06:02,866 --> 00:06:04,833 THOMAS ZURBUCHEN: For me, that is such 132 00:06:04,833 --> 00:06:07,300 an Earth-shattering idea that... 133 00:06:07,300 --> 00:06:09,066 That by itself would be worth 134 00:06:09,066 --> 00:06:10,400 the entire telescope. 135 00:06:12,233 --> 00:06:14,366 KATARIA: There are over 5,000 exoplanets 136 00:06:14,366 --> 00:06:17,166 that have been discovered so far. 137 00:06:17,166 --> 00:06:21,000 The actual number changes every day, so even I can't keep track. 138 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:23,833 NARRATOR: Exoplanets are alien worlds 139 00:06:23,833 --> 00:06:27,133 that exist beyond our solar system. 140 00:06:27,133 --> 00:06:29,333 KATARIA: But it really does blow the mind when you think about 141 00:06:29,333 --> 00:06:32,633 Carl Sagan saying there were billions of galaxies. 142 00:06:32,633 --> 00:06:34,333 And so that begs the question, 143 00:06:34,333 --> 00:06:36,833 you know, are there trillions of exoplanets in the universe? 144 00:06:36,833 --> 00:06:38,166 I think there are. 145 00:06:39,433 --> 00:06:43,733 NARRATOR: To put this in perspective, our galaxy, the Milky Way, 146 00:06:43,733 --> 00:06:47,800 contains at least 100 billion stars, 147 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:50,266 and astronomers estimate it may be home 148 00:06:50,266 --> 00:06:52,466 to thousands of solar systems 149 00:06:52,466 --> 00:06:55,866 with planets a lot like our own. 150 00:06:55,866 --> 00:07:01,100 The big question is, do any of them contain life? 151 00:07:01,100 --> 00:07:02,866 DAVID SING: The odds that one of these planets 152 00:07:02,866 --> 00:07:06,166 has the ingredients for life are very high. 153 00:07:06,166 --> 00:07:08,033 OLUSEYI: Are we alone in the universe, right? 154 00:07:08,033 --> 00:07:11,133 All common sense of looking at how biology, 155 00:07:11,133 --> 00:07:13,233 chemistry, geology, and physics work 156 00:07:13,233 --> 00:07:14,600 would say, no, we're not alone. 157 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:18,433 NARRATOR: Over the last few decades, 158 00:07:18,433 --> 00:07:21,266 our most powerful telescopes have been on the hunt 159 00:07:21,266 --> 00:07:24,700 for life as we know it. 160 00:07:24,700 --> 00:07:28,133 But just finding these distant worlds 161 00:07:28,133 --> 00:07:31,300 is a monumental task. 162 00:07:31,300 --> 00:07:34,066 As we're looking at planets within our galaxy, 163 00:07:34,066 --> 00:07:36,366 but outside of the solar system, 164 00:07:36,366 --> 00:07:37,566 the first thing we need to remember is, 165 00:07:37,566 --> 00:07:39,100 they're really, really small. 166 00:07:39,100 --> 00:07:42,100 NARRATOR: They're also light-years away 167 00:07:42,100 --> 00:07:46,400 and hidden by the glare of the star they orbit. 168 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:47,666 CHRISTINE CHEN: You can imagine, 169 00:07:47,666 --> 00:07:49,166 it's really hard to find something faint 170 00:07:49,166 --> 00:07:52,833 in the glare of that really bright star. 171 00:07:52,833 --> 00:07:54,533 KATARIA: I've often heard detecting exoplanets 172 00:07:54,533 --> 00:07:59,700 is like looking for a firefly in front of a lighthouse. 173 00:07:59,700 --> 00:08:01,066 But I might argue 174 00:08:01,066 --> 00:08:02,466 that it's actually more challenging. 175 00:08:04,300 --> 00:08:06,300 ANTONELLA NOTA: So astronomers have been very creative 176 00:08:06,300 --> 00:08:09,633 and they have come up with techniques 177 00:08:09,633 --> 00:08:12,300 that basically look at the planet 178 00:08:12,300 --> 00:08:16,566 when they pass in front of the star. 179 00:08:16,566 --> 00:08:19,400 ESPINOZA: So we're just waiting patiently, looking at the stars, 180 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:21,233 such that you see a little dimming in the light, 181 00:08:21,233 --> 00:08:24,500 because the planet blocks a little bit of that light. 182 00:08:24,500 --> 00:08:26,500 NARRATOR: The tiniest dip in light 183 00:08:26,500 --> 00:08:29,633 can reveal the presence of a planet, 184 00:08:29,633 --> 00:08:34,566 and as starlight passes through the planet's atmosphere, 185 00:08:34,566 --> 00:08:37,300 JWST's instruments search for chemical clues 186 00:08:37,300 --> 00:08:41,266 to what this alien world is made of. 187 00:08:41,266 --> 00:08:43,200 There are two types of science instruments 188 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:45,566 in general, cameras that produce images 189 00:08:45,566 --> 00:08:49,366 and spectroscopes that produce spectra-- rainbows. 190 00:08:49,366 --> 00:08:52,066   And the public is always fascinated and awed 191 00:08:52,066 --> 00:08:54,166 by the images that come. 192 00:08:54,166 --> 00:08:57,500 And the images hold a wealth of scientific data. 193 00:08:57,500 --> 00:09:00,666 But arguably, the workhorse of scientific instruments 194 00:09:00,666 --> 00:09:02,166 is the spectroscope. 195 00:09:03,333 --> 00:09:07,066 NARRATOR: To demonstrate what a spectroscope reveals, 196 00:09:07,066 --> 00:09:10,033 Matthew Diaz built a tabletop version 197 00:09:10,033 --> 00:09:14,233 while he was a JWST intern. 198 00:09:14,233 --> 00:09:18,633 He uses a flashlight to simulate the light of a celestial object. 199 00:09:18,633 --> 00:09:21,166 The light passes through a lens, 200 00:09:21,166 --> 00:09:24,266 a lot like the lens of an old-fashioned camera. 201 00:09:24,266 --> 00:09:26,333 And it focuses all the light to one point. 202 00:09:26,333 --> 00:09:28,766 There's this little slit here 203 00:09:28,766 --> 00:09:30,566 that allows the light to pass through. 204 00:09:30,566 --> 00:09:36,466 NARRATOR: Next, the light passes through another lens, and then 205 00:09:36,466 --> 00:09:38,600 through a prism. 206 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:39,866 DIAZ: What the prism's doing is, 207 00:09:39,866 --> 00:09:42,233 it's splitting the light into colors. 208 00:09:42,233 --> 00:09:44,766 And that is how you get your spectrum. 209 00:09:44,766 --> 00:09:46,600 STEFANIE MILAM: It's the same as if you see a rainbow: 210 00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:48,700 the light is actually being broken apart 211 00:09:48,700 --> 00:09:52,133 in such a way that you can see distinct colors. 212 00:09:52,133 --> 00:09:54,033 NARRATOR: And this spectrum of light 213 00:09:54,033 --> 00:09:57,466 is chock full of information. 214 00:09:57,466 --> 00:09:58,766 Each molecule has their own fingerprint, 215 00:09:58,766 --> 00:10:00,166 just like you have a fingerprint, 216 00:10:00,166 --> 00:10:01,166 like I have a fingerprint, 217 00:10:01,166 --> 00:10:03,000 that's distinguishable. 218 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:05,166 So we're looking for these key fingerprints 219 00:10:05,166 --> 00:10:06,733 of different molecules. 220 00:10:06,733 --> 00:10:10,300 NARRATOR: What distinguishes one spectrum from another 221 00:10:10,300 --> 00:10:13,433 are gaps where atoms and molecules 222 00:10:13,433 --> 00:10:16,700 reveal their identities by absorbing light. 223 00:10:16,700 --> 00:10:20,300 Molecules in space-- on stars, 224 00:10:20,300 --> 00:10:24,133 in planets-- can absorb certain colors of light. 225 00:10:24,133 --> 00:10:27,566   They just take that light out of the rainbow. 226 00:10:27,566 --> 00:10:30,100 So you look for the pattern of lines to say, 227 00:10:30,100 --> 00:10:31,966 "Ah, that's the barcode of calcium. 228 00:10:31,966 --> 00:10:33,600 That's the barcode of sodium." 229 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:35,366 They're, they're fingerprints, 230 00:10:35,366 --> 00:10:37,700 they're like little signs with a little placard 231 00:10:37,700 --> 00:10:38,733 saying, "Hello, I'm hydrogen." 232 00:10:40,333 --> 00:10:43,066 "Hi, I'm oxygen." 233 00:10:43,066 --> 00:10:47,100 NARRATOR: JWST'S spectroscopes are specially designed 234 00:10:47,100 --> 00:10:49,166 to detect these fingerprints 235 00:10:49,166 --> 00:10:53,100 in the infrared part of the spectrum. 236 00:10:53,100 --> 00:10:56,166 So this is where we have signatures of key molecules 237 00:10:56,166 --> 00:10:57,633 that we want to look at in space. 238 00:10:58,966 --> 00:11:00,900 Like water, 239 00:11:00,900 --> 00:11:03,666 carbon monoxide, 240 00:11:03,666 --> 00:11:07,433 carbon dioxide, methane. 241 00:11:07,433 --> 00:11:09,366 These are really key ingredients 242 00:11:09,366 --> 00:11:12,600 essential for a habitable world, or, you know, 243 00:11:12,600 --> 00:11:15,166 what we would associate with life. 244 00:11:16,766 --> 00:11:18,700 ♪ ♪ 245 00:11:18,700 --> 00:11:21,366 NARRATOR: Exoplanet researchers start their search 246 00:11:21,366 --> 00:11:23,500 for these key ingredients 247 00:11:23,500 --> 00:11:26,733 by exploring the atmosphere of a gas giant 248 00:11:26,733 --> 00:11:29,433 700 light-years away. 249 00:11:29,433 --> 00:11:33,133 WASP-39 b is bigger than Jupiter 250 00:11:33,133 --> 00:11:36,366 and vastly bigger than Earth. 251 00:11:36,366 --> 00:11:38,033 SING: It's larger than Jupiter, 252 00:11:38,033 --> 00:11:40,633 but it's still a lot less dense than Jupiter. 253 00:11:40,633 --> 00:11:43,966 NARRATOR: That makes its atmosphere bigger, puffier, 254 00:11:43,966 --> 00:11:47,233 and easier to detect. 255 00:11:47,233 --> 00:11:50,333 KEVIN STEVENSON: We had studied WASP-39 with the Hubble Space Telescope. 256 00:11:50,333 --> 00:11:53,633 We had detected water vapor in its atmosphere already. 257 00:11:53,633 --> 00:11:56,133 And so we wanted to study this planet at 258 00:11:56,133 --> 00:11:58,900 new wavelengths, using new instruments 259 00:11:58,900 --> 00:12:01,933 with a new telescope to see if we could get a bigger, 260 00:12:01,933 --> 00:12:04,800 broader picture of the planet. 261 00:12:04,800 --> 00:12:08,633 NARRATOR: Their goal: to find out if Webb's spectroscopes 262 00:12:08,633 --> 00:12:11,800 can detect a molecule that's never been detected 263 00:12:11,800 --> 00:12:14,866 in an exoplanet's atmosphere; 264 00:12:14,866 --> 00:12:18,166 one that is critical for life as we know it-- 265 00:12:18,166 --> 00:12:22,466 CO2, carbon dioxide. 266 00:12:22,466 --> 00:12:24,066 Here on Earth, 267 00:12:24,066 --> 00:12:28,066 it can be produced by geological processes 268 00:12:28,066 --> 00:12:31,766 and it's a crucial fuel for plant life. 269 00:12:34,333 --> 00:12:36,700 When the results finally come in... 270 00:12:36,700 --> 00:12:39,266 WOMAN: So that big peak right there, 271 00:12:39,266 --> 00:12:41,233 that's all carbon dioxide? 272 00:12:41,233 --> 00:12:42,400 WOMAN 2: Yes. 273 00:12:42,400 --> 00:12:45,466 WOMAN 1: Yeah, that's beautiful. 274 00:12:45,466 --> 00:12:49,466 We saw this giant, giant carbon dioxide feature 275 00:12:49,466 --> 00:12:51,833 that just popped out right away in the data. 276 00:12:51,833 --> 00:12:55,666 This carbon dioxide detection is just amazing. 277 00:12:55,666 --> 00:12:57,133 We all had high fives. 278 00:12:57,133 --> 00:13:00,033 It was a big moment, like, wow, 279 00:13:00,033 --> 00:13:01,700 we can look at the carbon chemistry 280 00:13:01,700 --> 00:13:06,166 of these planets in detail. 281 00:13:06,166 --> 00:13:08,100 And it just brought a big smile to my face. 282 00:13:08,100 --> 00:13:10,066 I was, like, "Yes, we did it!" 283 00:13:10,066 --> 00:13:11,400 There are definitely some other bumps in there, right? 284 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:12,833 That we don't quite... 285 00:13:12,833 --> 00:13:17,200 NARRATOR: The spectrum also revealed a surprise: 286 00:13:17,200 --> 00:13:20,933 the first detection of sulfur dioxide on a planet 287 00:13:20,933 --> 00:13:24,133 outside our solar system. 288 00:13:24,133 --> 00:13:28,200 Sulfur dioxide is found in Earth's ozone layer, 289 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:30,333 a crucial part of our atmosphere 290 00:13:30,333 --> 00:13:35,800 that shields us from the sun's harmful ultraviolet radiation. 291 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:39,966 Finding these molecules in the atmosphere of WASP-39 b 292 00:13:39,966 --> 00:13:42,800 is a landmark discovery. 293 00:13:42,800 --> 00:13:45,700 HAMMEL: What we've learned with JWST so far 294 00:13:45,700 --> 00:13:49,900 is that the data it's providing are exquisite for 295 00:13:49,900 --> 00:13:51,333 exoplanet atmospheres, 296 00:13:51,333 --> 00:13:55,366 and that has everybody salivating for more: 297 00:13:55,366 --> 00:14:00,000 more spectra, more transits. 298 00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:02,900 NARRATOR: The next big question, 299 00:14:02,900 --> 00:14:06,533 can JWST detect an atmosphere 300 00:14:06,533 --> 00:14:11,066 on a much smaller, rocky, Earth-size planet? 301 00:14:11,066 --> 00:14:15,100 One thing's for sure: it won't be easy. 302 00:14:15,100 --> 00:14:17,400 SING: We've never even detected 303 00:14:17,400 --> 00:14:20,433 an atmosphere around a rocky planet before. 304 00:14:20,433 --> 00:14:22,733 So now, with JWST, 305 00:14:22,733 --> 00:14:25,633 we have our very, very first chance 306 00:14:25,633 --> 00:14:29,500 to do that on a very select few planets. 307 00:14:30,833 --> 00:14:33,200 NARRATOR: In a few months, they'll get their first look 308 00:14:33,200 --> 00:14:38,233 at a rocky world and see if they can detect an atmosphere. 309 00:14:38,233 --> 00:14:40,766 Being able to perhaps make the first detections 310 00:14:40,766 --> 00:14:43,900 of an atmosphere on planets as small as the Earth 311 00:14:43,900 --> 00:14:46,933 is something that you only have dreamed of so far. 312 00:14:48,366 --> 00:14:51,566 NARRATOR: JWST is also looking 313 00:14:51,566 --> 00:14:53,233 for the chemical building blocks of life 314 00:14:53,233 --> 00:14:58,233 much closer to home, in our cosmic backyard. 315 00:14:58,233 --> 00:15:01,633 NAOMI ROWE-GURNEY: The one big question I want this telescope to answer 316 00:15:01,633 --> 00:15:05,066 is if there is life in our own solar system. 317 00:15:05,066 --> 00:15:07,000 If we found it in our own solar system, 318 00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:10,266 it would really hit home that it's not so rare 319 00:15:10,266 --> 00:15:14,333 that life can happen. 320 00:15:14,333 --> 00:15:16,233 JONATHAN LUNINE: There are three places 321 00:15:16,233 --> 00:15:18,500 in our solar system, 322 00:15:18,500 --> 00:15:20,500 beyond the Earth and beyond Mars, 323 00:15:20,500 --> 00:15:22,533 which are good candidates to go look for life, 324 00:15:22,533 --> 00:15:25,500 and those are Europa, around Jupiter, 325 00:15:25,500 --> 00:15:30,166   and the moons of Saturn, Enceladus and Titan. 326 00:15:30,166 --> 00:15:32,366 ROWE-GURNEY: Titan is a really exciting moon 327 00:15:32,366 --> 00:15:36,433 because it has an atmosphere and rivers 328 00:15:36,433 --> 00:15:39,966 and streams and lakes and oceans. 329 00:15:39,966 --> 00:15:42,833 But instead of being made of water, like they are on Earth, 330 00:15:42,833 --> 00:15:45,333 they're made of methane, like, liquid methane. 331 00:15:45,333 --> 00:15:48,266 And so it has, like, a water cycle, like we have on Earth, 332 00:15:48,266 --> 00:15:50,133 but it's a methane cycle. 333 00:15:50,133 --> 00:15:51,933 And that's really exciting for scientists, because 334 00:15:51,933 --> 00:15:54,066 if we find life on Titan, 335 00:15:54,066 --> 00:15:56,166 it's not going to be life like it is on Earth. 336 00:15:56,166 --> 00:15:58,133 It's going to be totally different life. 337 00:15:58,133 --> 00:16:00,733 So that's a really exciting thing to be looking for. 338 00:16:00,733 --> 00:16:02,966 But also, how do you look for life that you don't understand? 339 00:16:02,966 --> 00:16:05,900 So it's also a massive challenge. 340 00:16:05,900 --> 00:16:08,600 LUNINE: So the question comes up, 341 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:12,266 can life evolve from chemistry in 342 00:16:12,266 --> 00:16:14,400 a liquid medium that's not water, 343 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:17,366 that doesn't have the polar properties of water? 344 00:16:17,366 --> 00:16:19,266 And the answer is, we don't know. 345 00:16:20,666 --> 00:16:23,866 NARRATOR: Researchers are also on the hunt for the ingredients 346 00:16:23,866 --> 00:16:26,833 for life as we know it on Enceladus, 347 00:16:26,833 --> 00:16:31,133 a moon of Saturn, and Europa, a moon of Jupiter. 348 00:16:31,133 --> 00:16:32,366 LUNINE: Those are what are called 349 00:16:32,366 --> 00:16:34,700 ocean worlds, which means that they have 350 00:16:34,700 --> 00:16:38,066 liquid water in their interiors. 351 00:16:38,066 --> 00:16:40,500 GERONIMO VILLANUEVA: Imagine that there is a big body of water 352 00:16:40,500 --> 00:16:44,766 below the surface, protected from the environment... 353 00:16:44,766 --> 00:16:46,333 ROWE-GURNEY: Where there could be this subsurface ocean, 354 00:16:46,333 --> 00:16:48,266 where there could be hydrothermal vents, 355 00:16:48,266 --> 00:16:50,333 just like the ones that we have on Earth, 356 00:16:50,333 --> 00:16:55,266 which have life, like plants and animals. 357 00:16:55,266 --> 00:16:56,633 VILLANUEVA: ...full of organics, 358 00:16:56,633 --> 00:17:00,566 maybe some energy, internal energy, heat energy, 359 00:17:00,566 --> 00:17:02,900 and you have the soup of life. 360 00:17:03,766 --> 00:17:05,300 We don't know what could be happening there, 361 00:17:05,300 --> 00:17:07,700 but it's definitely a place that has 362 00:17:07,700 --> 00:17:10,100 all the right conditions for us to explore. 363 00:17:11,400 --> 00:17:13,766   LUNINE: Some biochemists have suggested 364 00:17:13,766 --> 00:17:15,933 that it's in environments like this 365 00:17:15,933 --> 00:17:18,466 where life might've got going 366 00:17:18,466 --> 00:17:21,333 billions of years ago on the Earth. 367 00:17:21,333 --> 00:17:22,833 ROWE-GURNEY: And that would be amazing to find. 368 00:17:22,833 --> 00:17:27,266 Even if we just found bacteria, that would be amazing. 369 00:17:27,266 --> 00:17:31,400 NARRATOR: Back in 2015, the Cassini mission studied Saturn, 370 00:17:31,400 --> 00:17:33,433 its rings, and moons, 371 00:17:33,433 --> 00:17:37,133 and captured this image of plumes bursting out of the ice 372 00:17:37,133 --> 00:17:39,866 at Enceladus's southern pole. 373 00:17:39,866 --> 00:17:41,500 CAROLYN PORCO: We saw dozens of fine jets 374 00:17:41,500 --> 00:17:46,000 shooting off the south pole of Enceladus. 375 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:49,433 When these pictures hit the web, the web exploded. 376 00:17:50,666 --> 00:17:54,400 OLUSEYI: And so we see with Enceladus, there are places where the ocean 377 00:17:54,400 --> 00:17:56,800 actually escapes from the surface, 378 00:17:56,800 --> 00:17:58,933 and it just flows out of these cracks 379 00:17:58,933 --> 00:18:01,966 and bursts out into outer space. 380 00:18:01,966 --> 00:18:05,733 PORCO: So this is, in effect, our best 381 00:18:05,733 --> 00:18:10,366 opportunity to study an extraterrestrial habitable zone. 382 00:18:11,733 --> 00:18:16,300 NARRATOR: The same may be true for Jupiter's moon Europa, 383 00:18:16,300 --> 00:18:19,566 covered with cracks and ridges that could be caused 384 00:18:19,566 --> 00:18:24,066 by the heat of an ocean beneath its icy surface. 385 00:18:24,066 --> 00:18:26,400 ROWE-GURNEY: So we'll be looking for water 386 00:18:26,400 --> 00:18:29,000 signatures, so H2O, the same water 387 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:31,533 that we have on Earth, and we'll also be looking for 388 00:18:31,533 --> 00:18:34,700 things like methane, which can be a chemical tracer 389 00:18:34,700 --> 00:18:36,366 that gives us an inclination 390 00:18:36,366 --> 00:18:38,833 that there might be something alive. 391 00:18:38,833 --> 00:18:41,233 Bacteria on Earth produces methane. 392 00:18:41,233 --> 00:18:44,133 We probably won't directly image life, 393 00:18:44,133 --> 00:18:48,133 because you can't really image bacteria from a telescope, 394 00:18:48,133 --> 00:18:52,866 but you can look at what the bacteria creates. 395 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:56,966 NARRATOR: While the team must wait 396 00:18:56,966 --> 00:19:00,200 several months for their observations to come in... 397 00:19:02,066 --> 00:19:06,833 ...JWST continues to send home stunning images, 398 00:19:06,833 --> 00:19:09,166 like this one of Jupiter. 399 00:19:09,166 --> 00:19:11,300 VILLANUEVA: You can see the rings, you can see the moons. 400 00:19:11,300 --> 00:19:14,600 I mean, this is, this is amazing. 401 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:16,600 And not only that you can see those images, 402 00:19:16,600 --> 00:19:18,733 but you know you can actually explore 403 00:19:18,733 --> 00:19:20,666 those elements with incredible precision. 404 00:19:20,666 --> 00:19:22,200 You can see what they're made of. 405 00:19:22,200 --> 00:19:26,633 The composition, the ices, the molecules in them. 406 00:19:26,633 --> 00:19:28,066 ROWE-GURNEY: When I first saw the image, 407 00:19:28,066 --> 00:19:30,100 I didn't even think I was looking at Neptune. 408 00:19:30,100 --> 00:19:32,033 I thought I was looking at a totally different planet. 409 00:19:33,600 --> 00:19:38,433 Seeing the rings in that much detail was just mind-blowing. 410 00:19:38,433 --> 00:19:39,900 HAMMEL: The last time 411 00:19:39,900 --> 00:19:43,233 we had seen that complete ring system 412 00:19:43,233 --> 00:19:45,766 was more than 30 years ago, 413 00:19:45,766 --> 00:19:49,900 when the Voyager 2 spacecraft had flown over Neptune. 414 00:19:49,900 --> 00:19:52,700 So what we are going to be doing is looking 415 00:19:52,700 --> 00:19:55,900 very carefully at the ring system today. 416 00:19:56,900 --> 00:19:59,400 Looking at how that ring system may have evolved 417 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:02,833 with time over those intervening decades, 418 00:20:02,833 --> 00:20:04,766 and trying to understand what that tells us 419 00:20:04,766 --> 00:20:06,433 about ring systems in general. 420 00:20:06,433 --> 00:20:08,466 How long do they last? 421 00:20:08,466 --> 00:20:09,666 What's driving them? 422 00:20:11,066 --> 00:20:12,200 EVANS: When you have a new telescope 423 00:20:12,200 --> 00:20:13,733 and you're just getting new data, 424 00:20:13,733 --> 00:20:16,833 it is very much like being, you know, a child 425 00:20:16,833 --> 00:20:18,600 around the holidays, and you, 426 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:20,033 and you come downstairs, 427 00:20:20,033 --> 00:20:21,333 and you're, like, "Oh," you know, 428 00:20:21,333 --> 00:20:23,766 "what presents are going to be there?" 429 00:20:23,766 --> 00:20:25,266   Every time you get this new image, 430 00:20:25,266 --> 00:20:27,000 it's just like unwrapping a present 431 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:29,700 to basically see what there is to see. 432 00:20:29,700 --> 00:20:32,733 So it's a pretty exciting experience. 433 00:20:32,733 --> 00:20:36,233 NARRATOR: But before we get the chance to appreciate 434 00:20:36,233 --> 00:20:38,633 these mesmerizing images, 435 00:20:38,633 --> 00:20:41,966 they need to be tweaked. 436 00:20:41,966 --> 00:20:43,266 STRAUGHN: The human eyes 437 00:20:43,266 --> 00:20:45,700 can only see a very narrow part of the spectrum. 438 00:20:45,700 --> 00:20:47,666 You know, your blue to red. 439 00:20:47,666 --> 00:20:50,400 But there's light on either of the other sides 440 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:51,666 of that spectrum. 441 00:20:51,666 --> 00:20:53,966 And of course, JWST is infrared, 442 00:20:53,966 --> 00:20:56,766 so it's on the red side of light. 443 00:20:56,766 --> 00:20:58,900 Right, so Webb is an infrared telescope, 444 00:20:58,900 --> 00:20:59,933 so it's, it's sensitive to light 445 00:20:59,933 --> 00:21:01,933 that is beyond what our eyes can see. 446 00:21:01,933 --> 00:21:04,866 So that's two layers of adjustments. 447 00:21:04,866 --> 00:21:07,600 NARRATOR: It's the job of the data image developer-- 448 00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:09,566 part science geek, 449 00:21:09,566 --> 00:21:12,300 part artist-- to take this 450 00:21:12,300 --> 00:21:16,666 invisible infrared light and translate it into colors 451 00:21:16,666 --> 00:21:18,133 our eyes can see. 452 00:21:19,633 --> 00:21:24,300 JWST takes multiple images of the same celestial object 453 00:21:24,300 --> 00:21:27,066 with different infrared filters, 454 00:21:27,066 --> 00:21:30,133 represented here in black and white. 455 00:21:30,133 --> 00:21:32,400 DEPASQUALE: We've taken light of different infrared 456 00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:34,566 wavelengths and split it up. 457 00:21:34,566 --> 00:21:36,400 And so there's long-wavelength infrared, 458 00:21:36,400 --> 00:21:38,433 medium wavelengths, but a little 459 00:21:38,433 --> 00:21:40,733 bit shorter, and then shorter wavelengths. 460 00:21:40,733 --> 00:21:44,233 NARRATOR: Now those infrared waves are translated 461 00:21:44,233 --> 00:21:47,266 into the colors of the rainbow. 462 00:21:47,266 --> 00:21:50,500 We try to adhere to a philosophy of colorizing the data 463 00:21:50,500 --> 00:21:51,966 that we call chromatic ordering. 464 00:21:51,966 --> 00:21:53,766 So we're capturing these wavelengths 465 00:21:53,766 --> 00:21:54,933 in infrared light, 466 00:21:54,933 --> 00:21:56,533 and we're shifting them into the visible part 467 00:21:56,533 --> 00:21:57,733 of the spectrum, 468 00:21:57,733 --> 00:22:00,333 and we are assigning colors that represent 469 00:22:00,333 --> 00:22:01,366 shorter to longer wavelengths, 470 00:22:01,366 --> 00:22:03,100 just like we would see them. 471 00:22:03,100 --> 00:22:04,600 (Mozart sonata playing) 472 00:22:04,600 --> 00:22:07,866 NARRATOR: Think of it like a song played on a piano 473 00:22:07,866 --> 00:22:11,566 transposed, so we're hearing it in a different key, 474 00:22:11,566 --> 00:22:14,933 but it's still the same song. 475 00:22:14,933 --> 00:22:17,800 So the longest wavelength is going to be red, so I will 476 00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:19,433 make that red. 477 00:22:19,433 --> 00:22:22,766 The next-longest wavelength, I'll assign that green. 478 00:22:22,766 --> 00:22:26,233 And then the shortest wavelength, and that'll be blue. 479 00:22:26,233 --> 00:22:28,600 In this case, we actually have four filters. 480 00:22:28,600 --> 00:22:30,633 One of them is a narrow-band filter 481 00:22:30,633 --> 00:22:33,933 that is really isolating a very specific kind of light. 482 00:22:33,933 --> 00:22:37,500 And that one, we color orange. 483 00:22:37,500 --> 00:22:39,400 So after pulling everything together, I see the, 484 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:40,666 the initial color composite 485 00:22:40,666 --> 00:22:42,966 image here, and it's really interesting-- 486 00:22:42,966 --> 00:22:44,133 there's a lot of potential here-- 487 00:22:44,133 --> 00:22:46,133 but I also see that it's very flat, 488 00:22:46,133 --> 00:22:49,666 and it needs some, some compositional work. 489 00:22:49,666 --> 00:22:51,166 ALYSSA PAGAN: And then this where it 490 00:22:51,166 --> 00:22:52,733 kind of goes into the subjective 491 00:22:52,733 --> 00:22:55,000 and more into the artistic. 492 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:57,000 DEPASQUALE: The stars can look very different. 493 00:22:57,000 --> 00:23:00,500 The quality of the nebula can look very different. 494 00:23:00,500 --> 00:23:01,966 There isn't really, like, a hard point where it becomes, 495 00:23:01,966 --> 00:23:03,500 you know, going from science to art. 496 00:23:03,500 --> 00:23:06,300 It's sort of the whole process. 497 00:23:06,300 --> 00:23:07,666 The science is always there. 498 00:23:07,666 --> 00:23:09,700 We're always respecting the data. 499 00:23:09,700 --> 00:23:11,566 We're not trying to introduce things 500 00:23:11,566 --> 00:23:13,633 that weren't there in the data to begin with, 501 00:23:13,633 --> 00:23:15,866 and we're not trying to remove things that are there. 502 00:23:15,866 --> 00:23:18,633 So the whole goal of this is to create 503 00:23:18,633 --> 00:23:21,333 an aesthetically pleasing image that will capture 504 00:23:21,333 --> 00:23:23,666 someone's attention and hopefully inspire them 505 00:23:23,666 --> 00:23:27,866 to want to learn more about this region in space. 506 00:23:27,866 --> 00:23:32,133 NARRATOR: This image of the Tarantula Nebula is not only beautiful, 507 00:23:32,133 --> 00:23:35,800 JWST'S infrared eye 508 00:23:35,800 --> 00:23:40,266 reveals thousands of baby stars once hidden from view, 509 00:23:40,266 --> 00:23:43,066 providing researchers new clues 510 00:23:43,066 --> 00:23:47,233 to decode the life cycle of stars. 511 00:23:47,233 --> 00:23:48,533 NOTA: You look at a newborn and you get 512 00:23:48,533 --> 00:23:50,766 a feeling for what that person will be 513 00:23:50,766 --> 00:23:52,366 when they are grown up, 514 00:23:52,366 --> 00:23:54,433 and the same thing for stars. 515 00:23:54,433 --> 00:23:57,533 You just measure them at the very beginning, and you can, 516 00:23:57,533 --> 00:24:00,366 you can imagine and you can infer 517 00:24:00,366 --> 00:24:03,800 how they will be and what they, they will become. 518 00:24:03,800 --> 00:24:07,066 ♪ ♪ 519 00:24:07,066 --> 00:24:10,300 NARRATOR: At the California Institute of Technology, 520 00:24:10,300 --> 00:24:12,366 an international team of scientists 521 00:24:12,366 --> 00:24:16,166 has gotten its data from JWST. 522 00:24:16,166 --> 00:24:17,500 We're just going to launch right into it. 523 00:24:17,500 --> 00:24:18,933 NARRATOR: They come together 524 00:24:18,933 --> 00:24:20,866 to discuss and debate what 525 00:24:20,866 --> 00:24:23,233 their test drive of the telescope has delivered. 526 00:24:23,233 --> 00:24:25,133 ARMUS: We have a great team, we have people in the U.S., 527 00:24:25,133 --> 00:24:27,700 we have people in Japan, we have people in Europe. 528 00:24:27,700 --> 00:24:30,133 We have young people and old people. 529 00:24:30,133 --> 00:24:31,733   And yeah, and then I was gonna talk about... 530 00:24:31,733 --> 00:24:33,000 U: So this group 531 00:24:33,000 --> 00:24:35,833 of astronomers I've known for many years, 532 00:24:35,833 --> 00:24:37,233 since my graduate school days, 533 00:24:37,233 --> 00:24:38,800 and I would call them my family. 534 00:24:38,800 --> 00:24:39,966 (all laughing) 535 00:24:39,966 --> 00:24:43,100 Team, Team 7460... 536 00:24:43,100 --> 00:24:46,833 EVANS: So for the last two years or so, it's been 537 00:24:46,833 --> 00:24:49,300 primarily meetings through Zoom, but there's no substitution 538 00:24:49,300 --> 00:24:50,566 for, like, just the energy 539 00:24:50,566 --> 00:24:52,733 you get having people in a room together. 540 00:24:52,733 --> 00:24:54,533 It's, it's fantastic. 541 00:24:54,533 --> 00:24:56,300 MAN: And then this is the zoom-in... 542 00:24:56,300 --> 00:24:59,433 NARRATOR: The team has gathered to figure out what JWST 543 00:24:59,433 --> 00:25:01,633 is telling them about one of 544 00:25:01,633 --> 00:25:05,666 the most mysterious objects in the cosmos: 545 00:25:05,666 --> 00:25:09,566 supermassive black holes. 546 00:25:09,566 --> 00:25:11,866 All massive galaxies in the universe 547 00:25:11,866 --> 00:25:16,300 have a huge black hole at their center. 548 00:25:16,300 --> 00:25:18,166 NORA LÜTZGENDORF: What do I love about black holes? 549 00:25:18,166 --> 00:25:19,766 So black holes are just 550 00:25:19,766 --> 00:25:21,733 the most amazing consequence of gravity. 551 00:25:21,733 --> 00:25:25,833 NARRATOR: The gravity of a black hole is so extreme 552 00:25:25,833 --> 00:25:30,633 that whatever goes in will never come out. 553 00:25:30,633 --> 00:25:33,966 Not even light itself can escape from it. 554 00:25:33,966 --> 00:25:36,233 MOUNTAIN: Material is falling into it the whole time, 555 00:25:36,233 --> 00:25:39,000 and they have these big disks of dust 556 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:40,766 and gas and everything 557 00:25:40,766 --> 00:25:42,800 which is swirling around the outside, 558 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:46,866 all trying to fall into the black hole. 559 00:25:46,866 --> 00:25:49,133 SABRINA STIERWALT: But we don't know how they got there. 560 00:25:49,133 --> 00:25:50,600 We don't know how you make 561 00:25:50,600 --> 00:25:53,566 a supermassive black hole. 562 00:25:53,566 --> 00:25:56,433 We don't know how they formed. 563 00:25:56,433 --> 00:25:59,300 STRAUGHN: So when we're thinking about these massive black holes 564 00:25:59,300 --> 00:26:01,100 at the centers of galaxies, 565 00:26:01,100 --> 00:26:04,066 a big question is sort of, "Who's in charge?" 566 00:26:04,066 --> 00:26:05,800 You know, is the host galaxy 567 00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:07,933 in control of the galaxy's evolution? 568 00:26:07,933 --> 00:26:10,066 Or is that big black hole at the center, 569 00:26:10,066 --> 00:26:12,566 is it having a really strong impact 570 00:26:12,566 --> 00:26:15,100 on how the galaxy changes over time? 571 00:26:15,100 --> 00:26:19,066 NARRATOR: In fact, there appears to be an uncanny connection 572 00:26:19,066 --> 00:26:20,600 between a supermassive black hole 573 00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:24,400 and the galaxy surrounding it. 574 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:27,433 EVANS: It seems like the ratio for the black hole mass 575 00:26:27,433 --> 00:26:29,466 to the star mass is about one to a thousand. 576 00:26:29,466 --> 00:26:33,800 So that seems to imply that somehow the galaxy itself 577 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:36,066 knows how massive the black hole is in it. 578 00:26:36,066 --> 00:26:38,833 It doesn't make that much sense, because the black hole, 579 00:26:38,833 --> 00:26:41,333 its sphere of influence is so small, 580 00:26:41,333 --> 00:26:43,300 it cannot really know what's around it. 581 00:26:43,300 --> 00:26:46,200 So how would those things be correlated? 582 00:26:46,200 --> 00:26:48,833 Why, why are they so correlated? 583 00:26:48,833 --> 00:26:51,133 EVANS: Keep in mind that we're talking about stars 584 00:26:51,133 --> 00:26:53,700 that are so far away from the black hole itself 585 00:26:53,700 --> 00:26:56,666 that the stars don't actually feel directly 586 00:26:56,666 --> 00:26:58,566 the gravitational influence of the black hole. 587 00:26:58,566 --> 00:27:00,700 ♪ ♪ 588 00:27:00,700 --> 00:27:02,366 NARRATOR: One of the best ways to investigate 589 00:27:02,366 --> 00:27:07,433 this strange relationship is to study merging galaxies. 590 00:27:07,433 --> 00:27:09,133 STIERWALT: When you throw two galaxies together, 591 00:27:09,133 --> 00:27:11,933 you can potentially grow a supermassive black hole 592 00:27:11,933 --> 00:27:13,900 because you're now feeding it. 593 00:27:13,900 --> 00:27:15,233 You're giving it all this material, 'cause it's 594 00:27:15,233 --> 00:27:17,733 crashed into this other galaxy. 595 00:27:17,733 --> 00:27:19,833 And by studying merging galaxies, 596 00:27:19,833 --> 00:27:22,000 we can potentially understand better 597 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:25,733 how these supermassive black holes grow, 598 00:27:25,733 --> 00:27:29,033 what sort of interaction does the supermassive black hole 599 00:27:29,033 --> 00:27:32,100 have with its surroundings. 600 00:27:32,100 --> 00:27:34,066 You have both black holes that are feeding 601 00:27:34,066 --> 00:27:36,633 and star formation happening in these galaxies. 602 00:27:36,633 --> 00:27:38,400 ♪ ♪ 603 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:41,533 NARRATOR: All that activity stirs up so much dust, 604 00:27:41,533 --> 00:27:45,500 it's nearly impossible to see the action unfold. 605 00:27:45,500 --> 00:27:48,766 It's very hard to actually look and see a black hole 606 00:27:48,766 --> 00:27:51,333 because all this dust and gas is in the way. 607 00:27:51,333 --> 00:27:57,966 NARRATOR: And here's where JWST's infrared eye comes into play. 608 00:27:57,966 --> 00:27:59,700 STRAUGHN: So I went to grad school in Arizona, 609 00:27:59,700 --> 00:28:02,433 and every now and then, a dust storm would blow through. 610 00:28:02,433 --> 00:28:04,833 And anyone who's ever been in a dust storm knows 611 00:28:04,833 --> 00:28:06,266 you can't see through dust. 612 00:28:06,266 --> 00:28:07,866 But infrared light 613 00:28:07,866 --> 00:28:12,033 has this amazing property that allows us to peer through dust. 614 00:28:12,033 --> 00:28:14,066 ♪ ♪ 615 00:28:14,066 --> 00:28:17,466 NARRATOR: This is an image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope 616 00:28:17,466 --> 00:28:23,500 in optical light of two galaxies in the process of merging. 617 00:28:23,500 --> 00:28:27,600 And this is what it looks like in infrared light 618 00:28:27,600 --> 00:28:29,600 with the Spitzer Space Telescope. 619 00:28:29,600 --> 00:28:32,000 ARMUS: When you looked at it with Spitzer in infrared light, 620 00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:35,100 all of the energy was coming from that one region, 621 00:28:35,100 --> 00:28:37,200 behind this shroud, 622 00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:40,533 and we knew we wanted to look at that. 623 00:28:40,533 --> 00:28:43,400 NARRATOR: They think somewhere inside this region 624 00:28:43,400 --> 00:28:46,366 is a feeding black hole. 625 00:28:46,366 --> 00:28:49,133 But while Spitzer was one of the most advanced 626 00:28:49,133 --> 00:28:51,700 infrared telescopes of its day, 627 00:28:51,700 --> 00:28:55,733 its mirror was only about three feet in diameter, 628 00:28:55,733 --> 00:28:58,233 compared to Hubble's eight-foot mirror 629 00:28:58,233 --> 00:29:02,700 and JWST's massive 21-foot mirror. 630 00:29:02,700 --> 00:29:05,766 And so clearly, Spitzer, you know, 631 00:29:05,766 --> 00:29:07,500 resolution is fairly low. 632 00:29:07,500 --> 00:29:09,800 But if you go now to what we see 633 00:29:09,800 --> 00:29:12,000 with the new James Webb images... 634 00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:14,000 (all chuckling, exclaiming) EVANS: ...this is what we see when we have 635 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:17,566 a six-meter telescope in space. 636 00:29:17,566 --> 00:29:22,866 NARRATOR: JWST's spectroscopes see through the dust, 637 00:29:22,866 --> 00:29:26,666 revealing these three distinct dots. 638 00:29:26,666 --> 00:29:30,133 Two are clusters of star formation 639 00:29:30,133 --> 00:29:34,566 and one of them is likely a feeding black hole. 640 00:29:34,566 --> 00:29:39,766 So the, the final scenario is that now you could see exactly 641 00:29:39,766 --> 00:29:41,900 what is on the, 642 00:29:41,900 --> 00:29:43,766 that giant blob. 643 00:29:43,766 --> 00:29:45,033 STIERWALT: We previously just knew 644 00:29:45,033 --> 00:29:46,400 that something was lighting up the dust, 645 00:29:46,400 --> 00:29:48,500 but we didn't know what it was. 646 00:29:48,500 --> 00:29:50,700 We're now able to see, 647 00:29:50,700 --> 00:29:52,400 oh, there's a supermassive black hole in there. 648 00:29:52,400 --> 00:29:53,866 And not only that, 649 00:29:53,866 --> 00:29:57,800 but it's destroying the dust in its immediate vicinity. 650 00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,266 ARMUS: It gives us a very close-up view 651 00:30:00,266 --> 00:30:03,533 of what's happening inside the galaxies, 652 00:30:03,533 --> 00:30:05,766 how the gas is getting into the supermassive black hole, 653 00:30:05,766 --> 00:30:07,833 what the supermassive black hole 654 00:30:07,833 --> 00:30:09,466 is doing to the surrounding area. 655 00:30:09,466 --> 00:30:11,833 ♪ ♪ 656 00:30:11,833 --> 00:30:13,433 U: And so the fact that we can see it 657 00:30:13,433 --> 00:30:16,333 at that level of detail is what amazed me. 658 00:30:16,333 --> 00:30:21,466 NARRATOR: Hopes are high that in the coming years, 659 00:30:21,466 --> 00:30:25,266 this unprecedented level of detail will provide new clues 660 00:30:25,266 --> 00:30:29,533 to how this relationship between supermassive black holes 661 00:30:29,533 --> 00:30:32,533 and their galaxies took shape. 662 00:30:32,533 --> 00:30:35,966 ♪ ♪ 663 00:30:35,966 --> 00:30:39,833 It's early morning at the University of Texas at Austin, 664 00:30:39,833 --> 00:30:44,966 and this team has just received its data and images from JWST. 665 00:30:44,966 --> 00:30:46,733 Okay, it's recording. 666 00:30:46,733 --> 00:30:49,833 NARRATOR: Principal investigator Steven Finkelstein 667 00:30:49,833 --> 00:30:53,366 keeps a video diary of their work. 668 00:30:53,366 --> 00:30:55,066 Good? Good. 669 00:30:55,066 --> 00:30:56,133 We've definitely had some highs, 670 00:30:56,133 --> 00:30:57,633 we've had some lows. 671 00:30:57,633 --> 00:31:01,333 Really exciting to see the data when it first came in. 672 00:31:01,333 --> 00:31:02,933 So this one looks really good. Ooh! 673 00:31:02,933 --> 00:31:06,333 What's in the... You've got something weird going on here. 674 00:31:06,333 --> 00:31:09,366 NARRATOR: The team is testing the telescope's ability 675 00:31:09,366 --> 00:31:12,900 to detect galaxies billions and billions 676 00:31:12,900 --> 00:31:15,733 of light-years away, 677 00:31:15,733 --> 00:31:21,000 to answer a question that has puzzled astronomers for decades: 678 00:31:21,000 --> 00:31:25,466 how did the universe first turn on its lights? 679 00:31:25,466 --> 00:31:27,233 When you think about the universe, 680 00:31:27,233 --> 00:31:32,266 it's sort of like we have this 13.8-billion-year story, 681 00:31:32,266 --> 00:31:35,833 and we've put together a lot of the pieces of that story, 682 00:31:35,833 --> 00:31:38,133 we know a lot about it, but there are still these holes, 683 00:31:38,133 --> 00:31:39,900 there's these gaps in the story that we don't 684 00:31:39,900 --> 00:31:41,800 quite know the answers to. 685 00:31:41,800 --> 00:31:45,333 And one of the critical gaps is sort of the very first chapter 686 00:31:45,333 --> 00:31:47,500 of this story of the universe. 687 00:31:47,500 --> 00:31:51,133 We don't know how galaxies got started. 688 00:31:51,133 --> 00:31:53,700 NARRATOR: If the universe had a scrapbook, 689 00:31:53,700 --> 00:31:57,933 this is its earliest baby picture, 690 00:31:57,933 --> 00:32:00,866 the cosmic microwave background, 691 00:32:00,866 --> 00:32:03,866 the afterglow of the Big Bang, 692 00:32:03,866 --> 00:32:08,800 when the universe is a mere 378,000 years old. 693 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:10,933 JOHN MATHER: It has little dimples all over it 694 00:32:10,933 --> 00:32:13,600 that are really important to our history. 695 00:32:13,600 --> 00:32:16,200 Our calculation says that the little dimples 696 00:32:16,200 --> 00:32:19,333 correspond to variations of density. 697 00:32:19,333 --> 00:32:21,966   And that matters because in our idea, 698 00:32:21,966 --> 00:32:24,566 the denser areas turn into 699 00:32:24,566 --> 00:32:26,466 objects like galaxies, and stars, 700 00:32:26,466 --> 00:32:28,466 and eventually planets and people. 701 00:32:28,466 --> 00:32:32,133 So we're here because there were dimples in the Big Bang. 702 00:32:32,133 --> 00:32:35,966 NARRATOR: But then... 703 00:32:35,966 --> 00:32:37,566 RIGBY: There's this missing piece. 704 00:32:37,566 --> 00:32:39,933 There's this... (hums "I don't know") 705 00:32:39,933 --> 00:32:42,233 ...that is hundreds of millions of years long. 706 00:32:42,233 --> 00:32:48,833 NARRATOR: A mysterious time known as the Cosmic Dark Ages. 707 00:32:48,833 --> 00:32:50,700 The Dark Ages was a period 708 00:32:50,700 --> 00:32:52,733 of the universe's history 709 00:32:52,733 --> 00:32:55,333 for several hundred million years 710 00:32:55,333 --> 00:32:59,200   when stars themselves didn't exist. 711 00:32:59,200 --> 00:33:01,800 STRAUGHN: You can sort of think of it as a hydrogen fog, 712 00:33:01,800 --> 00:33:03,266 mostly hydrogen. 713 00:33:03,266 --> 00:33:06,000 And when you have just hydrogen atoms floating around, 714 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:09,466 the intervening light would sort of bounce off the hydrogen. 715 00:33:09,466 --> 00:33:11,266 And so you can't "see" through it. 716 00:33:11,266 --> 00:33:14,866 So we sort of refer to it as a fog. 717 00:33:14,866 --> 00:33:16,500 NARRATOR: In our next picture, 718 00:33:16,500 --> 00:33:19,700 the universe is already in its adolescent years, 719 00:33:19,700 --> 00:33:22,333 and pretty grown up. 720 00:33:22,333 --> 00:33:24,900 In fact, it's filled with galaxies. 721 00:33:24,900 --> 00:33:29,166 We have, you know, if you want, teenage pictures and beyond. 722 00:33:29,166 --> 00:33:33,266 We, we're missing the toddler images. 723 00:33:33,266 --> 00:33:36,500 NARRATOR: We're missing that picture of how the Dark Ages ended 724 00:33:36,500 --> 00:33:41,000 and the first stars and galaxies took shape. 725 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:43,533 A blank page in our understanding 726 00:33:43,533 --> 00:33:45,700 of our cosmic history, 727 00:33:45,700 --> 00:33:49,433 one that many researchers across the globe, 728 00:33:49,433 --> 00:33:52,400 like the Austin team, hope to fill. 729 00:33:52,400 --> 00:33:55,600 They spend a week scrutinizing their data 730 00:33:55,600 --> 00:33:58,266 in search of ancient galaxies. 731 00:33:58,266 --> 00:34:00,666 So there were a group of us working here together 732 00:34:00,666 --> 00:34:03,200 looking at these very distant galaxies. 733 00:34:03,200 --> 00:34:04,633 We'd all gather around the computer, 734 00:34:04,633 --> 00:34:06,000 and look at them and say, 735 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:08,100 "Yes, that's a good one, yes, that's a good one. 736 00:34:08,100 --> 00:34:10,100 No, not that one." 737 00:34:10,100 --> 00:34:14,400 NARRATOR: In the process, they discover this faint reddish blob. 738 00:34:14,400 --> 00:34:16,200 When I first saw it, I was, ah, I don't believe it. 739 00:34:16,200 --> 00:34:17,666 It said a redshift of 14. 740 00:34:17,666 --> 00:34:19,300 Redshift of 14 is about 290 million years 741 00:34:19,300 --> 00:34:20,900 after the Big Bang. 742 00:34:20,900 --> 00:34:27,033 NARRATOR: If correct, this date would mean that JWST's infrared eye 743 00:34:27,033 --> 00:34:32,233 is seeing further back in time than any telescope ever has. 744 00:34:32,233 --> 00:34:34,966 STRAUGHN: One of the amazing things about telescopes 745 00:34:34,966 --> 00:34:37,433 is that they are literally time machines. 746 00:34:37,433 --> 00:34:39,866 They allow us to see the universe as it was 747 00:34:39,866 --> 00:34:41,233 in the distant past. 748 00:34:41,233 --> 00:34:45,066 NARRATOR: As light travels from ancient galaxies 749 00:34:45,066 --> 00:34:47,033 to our telescopes, 750 00:34:47,033 --> 00:34:49,700 it goes through a stunning transformation, 751 00:34:49,700 --> 00:34:52,400 from optical light, the light we can see, 752 00:34:52,400 --> 00:34:54,033 to infrared light. 753 00:34:54,033 --> 00:34:56,733 What's happening in the universe is, 754 00:34:56,733 --> 00:34:57,966 it's expanding 755 00:34:57,966 --> 00:35:01,433 and pulling space apart as it goes, 756 00:35:01,433 --> 00:35:04,033 and it's stretching the light in the same way. 757 00:35:04,033 --> 00:35:09,500 NARRATOR: This strange stretching is called redshift. 758 00:35:09,500 --> 00:35:13,533 The higher the redshift, the older the galaxy. 759 00:35:13,533 --> 00:35:15,033 RIGBY: That's why the telescope was built, 760 00:35:15,033 --> 00:35:17,566 to find those distant, faint red galaxies, 761 00:35:17,566 --> 00:35:19,433 some of which are the first galaxies 762 00:35:19,433 --> 00:35:20,800 that formed after the Big Bang. 763 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:22,566 That looks pretty deep. 764 00:35:22,566 --> 00:35:24,400 I mean, obviously, right? 765 00:35:24,400 --> 00:35:26,166 NARRATOR: Based on their preliminary findings, 766 00:35:26,166 --> 00:35:29,866 the team thinks it might have found one of the oldest galaxies 767 00:35:29,866 --> 00:35:32,333 humans have ever set eyes on. 768 00:35:32,333 --> 00:35:34,466 We've spent the last 24 hours trying to throw 769 00:35:34,466 --> 00:35:36,900 everything we can at this galaxy to convince ourselves 770 00:35:36,900 --> 00:35:40,233 that it is not an extremely distant galaxy. 771 00:35:40,233 --> 00:35:41,266 And we failed. 772 00:35:41,266 --> 00:35:44,866 (all toasting) 773 00:35:44,866 --> 00:35:45,866 FINKELSTEIN: So with that, 774 00:35:45,866 --> 00:35:47,666 it's my daughter's birthday, 775 00:35:47,666 --> 00:35:48,833 I'm going to go take her to dinner, 776 00:35:48,833 --> 00:35:50,366 and then spend all day tomorrow 777 00:35:50,366 --> 00:35:51,833 trying to write up this paper draft, 778 00:35:51,833 --> 00:35:53,633 and hopefully get it out there pretty soon. 779 00:35:53,633 --> 00:35:57,900 NARRATOR: The team names the galaxy Maisie, 780 00:35:57,900 --> 00:36:00,933 after Steven's nine-year-old daughter. 781 00:36:00,933 --> 00:36:05,033 But finding Maisie isn't the biggest surprise. 782 00:36:05,033 --> 00:36:07,633 FINKELSTEIN: We were able to see right away, there were lots of 783 00:36:07,633 --> 00:36:09,333 really distant galaxies to find, 784 00:36:09,333 --> 00:36:11,600 and every time we made the data better, 785 00:36:11,600 --> 00:36:13,300 they just got more believable. 786 00:36:13,300 --> 00:36:14,900 Oh, there's still more! 787 00:36:14,900 --> 00:36:16,766 Yeah, there's so many! 788 00:36:16,766 --> 00:36:18,600 We were giddy, we were little, little schoolchildren. 789 00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:20,666 (chuckling): You know, looking at all these, all these galaxies 790 00:36:20,666 --> 00:36:22,600 and all of these images. 791 00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:27,600 NARRATOR: In fact, Maisie is just one of many ancient galaxies 792 00:36:27,600 --> 00:36:33,633 that can be found in this stunning mosaic of JWST images. 793 00:36:33,633 --> 00:36:35,500 Galaxies, galaxies, galaxies. 794 00:36:35,500 --> 00:36:40,266 The full image has about 100,000 galaxies. 795 00:36:40,266 --> 00:36:44,900 KARTALTEPE: You hardly find any empty spaces in the images. 796 00:36:44,900 --> 00:36:47,566 Every tiny little speck, every, every space, is a galaxy. 797 00:36:47,566 --> 00:36:49,533 And you zoom in and you see more. 798 00:36:49,533 --> 00:36:51,633 And you zoom in and you see more. 799 00:36:51,633 --> 00:36:53,333 And so this was Maisie's galaxy, 800 00:36:53,333 --> 00:36:56,100   this red blob right here. 801 00:36:56,100 --> 00:36:59,433 Beautiful red blob right here. (Kartaltepe laughs) 802 00:36:59,433 --> 00:37:01,533 RIGBY: There's a lot of excitement, there's a lot of early 803 00:37:01,533 --> 00:37:03,566 preliminary results. 804 00:37:03,566 --> 00:37:06,066 That's the scientific process where people are 805 00:37:06,066 --> 00:37:09,533 finding candidates to be some of these very distant galaxies 806 00:37:09,533 --> 00:37:11,066 and then studying their properties. 807 00:37:11,066 --> 00:37:16,366 NARRATOR: For now, Maisie is considered a candidate 808 00:37:16,366 --> 00:37:19,133 because its age remains uncertain while the telescope 809 00:37:19,133 --> 00:37:21,366 is still being calibrated. 810 00:37:21,366 --> 00:37:23,933 BOYER: It is really important to get the calibration 811 00:37:23,933 --> 00:37:25,766 of your telescope right, 812 00:37:25,766 --> 00:37:27,300 because when you take an image 813 00:37:27,300 --> 00:37:28,800 of a galaxy or a star, 814 00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:30,600 basically the, the only thing 815 00:37:30,600 --> 00:37:31,866 that you're measuring, 816 00:37:31,866 --> 00:37:33,366 the fundamental measurement, is the brightness 817 00:37:33,366 --> 00:37:36,000   of that object at different wavelengths. 818 00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:38,000 And so you need to get that brightness right. 819 00:37:38,000 --> 00:37:40,566 NARRATOR: Which is exactly what a team 820 00:37:40,566 --> 00:37:44,833 at the Space Telescope Science Institute is attempting to do. 821 00:37:44,833 --> 00:37:49,100 What they find will be crucial for the future of JWST 822 00:37:49,100 --> 00:37:54,233 and the reliability of all the findings produced from its data, 823 00:37:54,233 --> 00:37:58,766 including the age of ancient galaxies like Maisie. 824 00:37:58,766 --> 00:37:59,766 We can do it better... 825 00:37:59,766 --> 00:38:03,066 (people talking in background) 826 00:38:03,066 --> 00:38:07,900 NARRATOR: The team is observing a cluster of stars known as Messier 92, 827 00:38:07,900 --> 00:38:09,300 one of the brightest 828 00:38:09,300 --> 00:38:12,433 and oldest collections of stars in the Milky Way. 829 00:38:12,433 --> 00:38:14,866 BOYER: These are stars that have been studied 830 00:38:14,866 --> 00:38:17,500 for decades by lots of telescopes everywhere, 831 00:38:17,500 --> 00:38:19,433 and, and we know a lot about them. 832 00:38:19,433 --> 00:38:23,800 NARRATOR: But when they get their data back from JWST... 833 00:38:23,800 --> 00:38:24,800 WOMAN: Uh-oh. 834 00:38:24,800 --> 00:38:26,466 I think I found an error. 835 00:38:26,466 --> 00:38:29,733 NARRATOR: ...something's not adding up. 836 00:38:29,733 --> 00:38:32,200 BOYER: When we were looking at the data for the first time, 837 00:38:32,200 --> 00:38:35,966 what we were seeing was that the brightness of stars 838 00:38:35,966 --> 00:38:37,966 measured on the different detectors 839 00:38:37,966 --> 00:38:40,733 was a little bit different on each detector. 840 00:38:40,733 --> 00:38:43,666 So one detector was measuring the star a little bit brighter, 841 00:38:43,666 --> 00:38:46,100 the other one was measuring it a little bit fainter. 842 00:38:46,100 --> 00:38:47,366 WOMAN 2: Is this the M92 image that's weird? 843 00:38:47,366 --> 00:38:48,533 WOMAN 1: Yeah. 844 00:38:48,533 --> 00:38:52,466 NARRATOR: Astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi 845 00:38:52,466 --> 00:38:55,000 demonstrates the discrepancy they found 846 00:38:55,000 --> 00:38:59,800 using some light meters and this 100-watt light bulb. 847 00:38:59,800 --> 00:39:03,866 OLUSEYI: Assume that this light bulb is my star that has been measured 848 00:39:03,866 --> 00:39:06,800 over and over and over again for decades. 849 00:39:06,800 --> 00:39:08,700 And I know how bright it is, really. 850 00:39:08,700 --> 00:39:10,466 And now I have a detector 851 00:39:10,466 --> 00:39:11,966 that I'm going to point at it, 852 00:39:11,966 --> 00:39:12,966 and it's going to give me a reading 853 00:39:12,966 --> 00:39:16,233 for how bright this light is. 854 00:39:16,233 --> 00:39:18,733 So, I point this at my star, 855 00:39:18,733 --> 00:39:20,500 and then I lock in the measured value. 856 00:39:20,500 --> 00:39:21,833 Now I'm going to take a different detector 857 00:39:21,833 --> 00:39:23,433 and I'm going to do the same thing. 858 00:39:23,433 --> 00:39:28,866 ♪ ♪ 859 00:39:28,866 --> 00:39:29,966 And I do that with another detector. 860 00:39:29,966 --> 00:39:32,400 Hold it for a standard distance, 861 00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:34,366 and lock in the value. 862 00:39:34,366 --> 00:39:36,733 Well, guess what? 863 00:39:36,733 --> 00:39:37,933 They don't all have 864 00:39:37,933 --> 00:39:39,300 the same reading. 865 00:39:39,300 --> 00:39:40,800 They are slightly different, one from the other, 866 00:39:40,800 --> 00:39:43,333 and that's normal. 867 00:39:43,333 --> 00:39:44,766 If I took the light 868 00:39:44,766 --> 00:39:48,900 from a single star and shined it on different detectors, 869 00:39:48,900 --> 00:39:52,166 they may each give us a different reading. 870 00:39:52,166 --> 00:39:56,333 NARRATOR: It's a common problem instrument scientist 871 00:39:56,333 --> 00:39:58,766 Mike Ressler knows all too well. 872 00:39:58,766 --> 00:40:02,333 He helped to develop the detectors 873 00:40:02,333 --> 00:40:07,066 for one of the instruments onboard JWST, called MIRI. 874 00:40:07,066 --> 00:40:08,166 RESSLER: The detectors we use 875 00:40:08,166 --> 00:40:10,766 in MIRI are silicon detectors, 876 00:40:10,766 --> 00:40:13,166 and they are very similar to the detectors 877 00:40:13,166 --> 00:40:14,166 that you might find 878 00:40:14,166 --> 00:40:16,300 in a digital camera. 879 00:40:16,300 --> 00:40:18,033 NARRATOR: In fact, if you take off the lens, 880 00:40:18,033 --> 00:40:22,300 you'll find a detector behind the shutter, 881 00:40:22,300 --> 00:40:25,433 this greenish-gray rectangular silicon chip. 882 00:40:25,433 --> 00:40:28,166 RESSLER: The light comes through the lens and gets focused 883 00:40:28,166 --> 00:40:32,000 on that rectangle, and that is the detector. 884 00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:34,600 Each detector has its own personality, 885 00:40:34,600 --> 00:40:36,400 so one detector might be 886 00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:38,366 a little more sensitive than another. 887 00:40:38,366 --> 00:40:41,133 They don't all respond to light in the same way. 888 00:40:41,133 --> 00:40:45,400 NARRATOR: MIRI has three detectors like this one. 889 00:40:45,400 --> 00:40:48,233 Onboard JWST there are 18, 890 00:40:48,233 --> 00:40:50,900 each with its own personality. 891 00:40:50,900 --> 00:40:54,400 We're trying to ensure that the personality of the detector 892 00:40:54,400 --> 00:40:55,966 doesn't show up in our data. 893 00:40:55,966 --> 00:40:57,466 We want the data to represent 894 00:40:57,466 --> 00:40:59,600 what's actually out in the universe. 895 00:40:59,600 --> 00:41:03,633 NARRATOR: Using the known brightness of the stars in Messier 92 896 00:41:03,633 --> 00:41:04,933 as their guide, 897 00:41:04,933 --> 00:41:07,366 the team adjusts how it processes the data, 898 00:41:07,366 --> 00:41:11,100 updating the calibration of the telescope. 899 00:41:11,100 --> 00:41:12,833 OLUSEYI: Once we've calibrated our instrument, 900 00:41:12,833 --> 00:41:14,800 we can go and point it at things that we have no idea 901 00:41:14,800 --> 00:41:16,900 how bright they are intrinsically, 902 00:41:16,900 --> 00:41:18,633 and by measuring its brightness, 903 00:41:18,633 --> 00:41:22,800 we can now get a very accurate measurement of its distance. 904 00:41:22,800 --> 00:41:25,600 And those are the numbers that go into our calculations 905 00:41:25,600 --> 00:41:28,233 of the evolution of the universe. 906 00:41:28,233 --> 00:41:31,900 NARRATOR: Back in Austin, the team is also improving 907 00:41:31,900 --> 00:41:33,500 how they process their data. 908 00:41:33,500 --> 00:41:38,400 This, along with tweaks in the calibration of the instruments, 909 00:41:38,400 --> 00:41:42,066 modifies the estimate of Maisie's age. 910 00:41:42,066 --> 00:41:43,600 FINKELSTEIN: The distance did change over time 911 00:41:43,600 --> 00:41:45,633 in the first few weeks, as we understood the data. 912 00:41:45,633 --> 00:41:48,366 That revised the distance estimate from a time 913 00:41:48,366 --> 00:41:50,066 about 300 million years after the Big Bang 914 00:41:50,066 --> 00:41:51,866 to about 370 million years after the Big Bang. 915 00:41:51,866 --> 00:41:55,133 NARRATOR: Maisie is probably out of the running 916 00:41:55,133 --> 00:41:59,500 for most ancient galaxy ever seen. 917 00:41:59,500 --> 00:42:01,300 There's sort of a game in the field of trying to find 918 00:42:01,300 --> 00:42:02,566 the record holder, right? 919 00:42:02,566 --> 00:42:04,133 Because it's exciting, and everybody wants 920 00:42:04,133 --> 00:42:05,966 the most distant one, and that's fun. 921 00:42:05,966 --> 00:42:08,633 But I think the real science is going to come from 922 00:42:08,633 --> 00:42:10,400 studying their properties in more detail, 923 00:42:10,400 --> 00:42:12,266 what their colors are, what their shapes are, 924 00:42:12,266 --> 00:42:15,533 what the properties of their stars are, 925 00:42:15,533 --> 00:42:17,800 and that's scientifically a lot more interesting 926 00:42:17,800 --> 00:42:22,033 than, than just the record holder. 927 00:42:22,033 --> 00:42:27,266 NARRATOR: The telescope has been exploring the cosmos 24/7. 928 00:42:27,266 --> 00:42:30,500 Exoplanet researchers Kevin Stevenson 929 00:42:30,500 --> 00:42:33,966 and David Sing are about to receive data for 930 00:42:33,966 --> 00:42:36,366 what may be one of the telescope's 931 00:42:36,366 --> 00:42:39,533 most challenging observations so far: 932 00:42:39,533 --> 00:42:44,233 attempting to detect the atmosphere of a rocky exoplanet, 933 00:42:44,233 --> 00:42:48,900 something that has never been done by any other telescope. 934 00:42:48,900 --> 00:42:54,066 They focus on an exoplanet named GJ 486 b. 935 00:42:54,066 --> 00:42:58,066 Researchers estimate it's about 30% larger than Earth, 936 00:42:58,066 --> 00:43:03,433 but in comparison to Jupiter and a gas giant like WASP-39b, 937 00:43:03,433 --> 00:43:05,766 it's downright puny, 938 00:43:05,766 --> 00:43:10,200 making its atmosphere much harder to detect. 939 00:43:10,200 --> 00:43:17,533 So, of all the rocky planets out there, why pick this one? 940 00:43:17,533 --> 00:43:19,700 It's only about 26 light-years away. 941 00:43:19,700 --> 00:43:22,866 So it's very close just in our own neighborhood. 942 00:43:22,866 --> 00:43:26,333 NARRATOR: When it comes to the size of the universe, 943 00:43:26,333 --> 00:43:29,600 that's practically next door. 944 00:43:29,600 --> 00:43:33,100 This planet also orbits close to a red dwarf, 945 00:43:33,100 --> 00:43:37,533 a star that's smaller and dimmer than our sun. 946 00:43:37,533 --> 00:43:40,866 STEVENSON: When we want to study rocky planets that are Earth-sized, 947 00:43:40,866 --> 00:43:43,266 we cannot change the size of the planet. 948 00:43:43,266 --> 00:43:46,633 So our goal is to go after those rocky planets 949 00:43:46,633 --> 00:43:50,400 that are around the smallest stars. 950 00:43:50,400 --> 00:43:52,766 So it's one of the few select planets 951 00:43:52,766 --> 00:43:54,966 you have a chance to see an atmosphere 952 00:43:54,966 --> 00:43:56,233 around a rocky planet. 953 00:43:56,233 --> 00:44:02,000 All righty, let's get this party started, 954 00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:04,766 and look at the second transit. 955 00:44:04,766 --> 00:44:08,166 NARRATOR: JWST has documented a transit. 956 00:44:08,166 --> 00:44:11,866 Now the search for an atmosphere begins. 957 00:44:11,866 --> 00:44:15,566 They spend days analyzing their observations, 958 00:44:15,566 --> 00:44:17,900 each using slightly different methods 959 00:44:17,900 --> 00:44:19,766 to process the data. 960 00:44:19,766 --> 00:44:23,733 Kevin's results look promising. 961 00:44:23,733 --> 00:44:27,366 There's a lot to look into to make sure 962 00:44:27,366 --> 00:44:30,700 that the result is robust. 963 00:44:30,700 --> 00:44:34,466 But, at this point, 964 00:44:34,466 --> 00:44:38,266 maybe. 965 00:44:38,266 --> 00:44:39,266 That would be cool. 966 00:44:39,266 --> 00:44:40,800 NARRATOR: Their next step: 967 00:44:40,800 --> 00:44:44,233 to meet with fellow team members to compare their findings. 968 00:44:44,233 --> 00:44:46,200 Everyone excited? WOMAN: Oh, yeah. 969 00:44:47,366 --> 00:44:51,233 Okay, well, let's take a look at the transmission spectrum. 970 00:44:51,233 --> 00:44:52,766 NARRATOR: It turns out 971 00:44:52,766 --> 00:44:55,466 that when David processed the data, 972 00:44:55,466 --> 00:44:56,733 he didn't find 973 00:44:56,733 --> 00:44:58,766 the chemical signature of an atmosphere. 974 00:44:58,766 --> 00:45:01,433 SING: So one possibility is, it doesn't have 975 00:45:01,433 --> 00:45:03,800 any atmosphere, and the spectra will look 976 00:45:03,800 --> 00:45:06,500 basically just like a flat line. 977 00:45:06,500 --> 00:45:09,600 So there's a lot of talk about, is it a flat line? 978 00:45:09,600 --> 00:45:11,100 Is it not a flat line? 979 00:45:11,100 --> 00:45:13,933 NARRATOR: A flat line, because the chemical signature 980 00:45:13,933 --> 00:45:16,733 of the star's light did not seem to change 981 00:45:16,733 --> 00:45:20,633 when the planet passed in front of it. 982 00:45:20,633 --> 00:45:23,300 MAN: Okay, now let's look at Kevin's. 983 00:45:23,300 --> 00:45:25,166 We've got it looking 984 00:45:25,166 --> 00:45:27,966 inconsistent with a flat line, first blush. 985 00:45:27,966 --> 00:45:32,500 NARRATOR: Kevin did detect a tiny shift. 986 00:45:32,500 --> 00:45:35,533 This one is pretty consistent 987 00:45:35,533 --> 00:45:37,166 with water. MAN: Water! 988 00:45:37,166 --> 00:45:38,700 (man chuckling) 989 00:45:38,700 --> 00:45:39,766 MAN 3: Wow. MAN 1: Yeah. 990 00:45:39,766 --> 00:45:42,500 NARRATOR: Water could mean 991 00:45:42,500 --> 00:45:47,166 that this rocky world has an atmosphere. 992 00:45:47,166 --> 00:45:49,133 Well, I think an atmosphere is still on the table. 993 00:45:49,133 --> 00:45:50,833 I mean, if I bet right now, 994 00:45:50,833 --> 00:45:53,233 I think it would probably be a flat line. 995 00:45:53,233 --> 00:45:55,600 But it's close. 996 00:45:55,600 --> 00:45:57,033 NARRATOR: It will take months 997 00:45:57,033 --> 00:46:01,833 and more observations to determine if GJ 486 b 998 00:46:01,833 --> 00:46:05,166 has an atmosphere. 999 00:46:05,166 --> 00:46:07,633 ♪ ♪ 1000 00:46:07,633 --> 00:46:10,400 We are on the bloody edge of, of, like, 1001 00:46:10,400 --> 00:46:11,766 what this telescope can do. 1002 00:46:11,766 --> 00:46:12,933 We are on the very edge 1003 00:46:12,933 --> 00:46:15,433 of what the instrument capabilities are, 1004 00:46:15,433 --> 00:46:19,100 the telescope precision, and we are hoping 1005 00:46:19,100 --> 00:46:23,633 that we can tease out signals that are on the order 1006 00:46:23,633 --> 00:46:25,366 of tens of parts per million. 1007 00:46:25,366 --> 00:46:27,000 We don't know the answer yet, 1008 00:46:27,000 --> 00:46:29,533 but we also can't say 1009 00:46:29,533 --> 00:46:31,800 that the transmission spectrum is flat. 1010 00:46:31,800 --> 00:46:33,833 And so there's optimism. 1011 00:46:33,833 --> 00:46:36,000 I would say cautiously optimistic. 1012 00:46:38,500 --> 00:46:41,733 NARRATOR: When it comes to the search for the chemical building blocks 1013 00:46:41,733 --> 00:46:44,000 of life in our own solar system, 1014 00:46:44,000 --> 00:46:48,600 JWST's observations of Enceladus and Europa 1015 00:46:48,600 --> 00:46:50,366 are finally in. 1016 00:46:50,366 --> 00:46:51,966 I was wondering about this, by the way. 1017 00:46:51,966 --> 00:46:54,633 NARRATOR: And researchers have begun to analyze their data 1018 00:46:54,633 --> 00:46:58,633 pixel by pixel, creating these chemical maps 1019 00:46:58,633 --> 00:47:02,133 of two mysterious worlds. 1020 00:47:02,133 --> 00:47:05,833 When it comes to the plumes of Enceladus, 1021 00:47:05,833 --> 00:47:09,633 they see something downright bizarre. 1022 00:47:09,633 --> 00:47:11,866 We saw this huge plume which extends, 1023 00:47:11,866 --> 00:47:15,700 like, 40 times the size of the moon. 1024 00:47:15,700 --> 00:47:17,933 NARRATOR: To put this in perspective, 1025 00:47:17,933 --> 00:47:22,400 this red pixel is about the size of Enceladus. 1026 00:47:22,400 --> 00:47:23,633 The moon is within a pixel. 1027 00:47:23,633 --> 00:47:25,366 A pixel is actually bigger than the moon. 1028 00:47:25,366 --> 00:47:27,566 NARRATOR: The blue pixels around it: 1029 00:47:27,566 --> 00:47:31,966 water pouring out of the plumes. 1030 00:47:31,966 --> 00:47:33,133 VILLANUEVA: This cannot be right. 1031 00:47:33,133 --> 00:47:35,333 This too big compared to the moon. 1032 00:47:35,333 --> 00:47:39,266 NARRATOR: And this massive plume may be chock full of clues 1033 00:47:39,266 --> 00:47:41,466 to the chemical building blocks of life 1034 00:47:41,466 --> 00:47:44,500 in its underground ocean. 1035 00:47:44,500 --> 00:47:47,233 VILLANUEVA: We can look for carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide. 1036 00:47:47,233 --> 00:47:49,500 For every single pixel that we have, 1037 00:47:49,500 --> 00:47:52,200 we actually had a full spectrum behind it. 1038 00:47:52,200 --> 00:47:56,833   NARRATOR: Europa also delivers a surprise. 1039 00:47:56,833 --> 00:48:00,300 It turns out that its surface is far more complex 1040 00:48:00,300 --> 00:48:02,033 than the team expected. 1041 00:48:02,033 --> 00:48:03,733 So this is on the surface. 1042 00:48:03,733 --> 00:48:05,266 This is on the surface. 1043 00:48:05,266 --> 00:48:07,566 We're seeing all this surface composition, you know, 1044 00:48:07,566 --> 00:48:09,133 speaking to us, I mean, 1045 00:48:09,133 --> 00:48:11,266 and we have a spectra for every single of these pixels, 1046 00:48:11,266 --> 00:48:13,100 so we can actually see what it's made of. 1047 00:48:13,100 --> 00:48:14,933 So I think this data is going to be super-cool. 1048 00:48:14,933 --> 00:48:16,933 We're seeing things on the surface 1049 00:48:16,933 --> 00:48:18,400 I've never seen before. 1050 00:48:18,400 --> 00:48:20,666 We can see the ices changing, 1051 00:48:20,666 --> 00:48:25,133 and new ices, signatures that we were not expecting. 1052 00:48:25,133 --> 00:48:26,733 You just have to go and mine it and search for it. 1053 00:48:26,733 --> 00:48:28,900 If you don't search for it, you don't know. 1054 00:48:28,900 --> 00:48:31,900 So our exploration has been just slowly going 1055 00:48:31,900 --> 00:48:33,300 molecule by molecule, 1056 00:48:33,300 --> 00:48:35,966 but there are hundreds of other molecules or ices 1057 00:48:35,966 --> 00:48:38,333 that may be hidden below, behind every pixel. 1058 00:48:38,333 --> 00:48:42,033 NARRATOR: Geronimo Villanueva and his team 1059 00:48:42,033 --> 00:48:45,033 will spend the next few months poring over those pixels, 1060 00:48:45,033 --> 00:48:48,233 hunting for the chemical building blocks of life 1061 00:48:48,233 --> 00:48:51,266 on Europa and Enceladus. 1062 00:48:51,266 --> 00:48:54,700 ♪ ♪ 1063 00:48:54,700 --> 00:49:00,133 Back in Austin, the team has received more data, 1064 00:49:00,133 --> 00:49:04,133 this time from JWST's spectroscopes. 1065 00:49:04,133 --> 00:49:05,333 The spectra tell us about the chemistry. 1066 00:49:05,333 --> 00:49:06,733 It tells us about the physics. 1067 00:49:06,733 --> 00:49:09,200 It tells us how many heavy elements have built up. 1068 00:49:09,200 --> 00:49:13,500 It can tell us what the age is, it can tell us what the rate 1069 00:49:13,500 --> 00:49:15,133 at which the galaxy is forming stars. 1070 00:49:15,133 --> 00:49:17,800 And so all of the really important physical information 1071 00:49:17,800 --> 00:49:19,400 really comes from the spectra. 1072 00:49:19,400 --> 00:49:24,800 NARRATOR: And the spectra are filled with the unexpected. 1073 00:49:24,800 --> 00:49:26,366 KARTALTEPE: One of the things that really strikes me 1074 00:49:26,366 --> 00:49:29,033 about looking at the spectra of these high redshift galaxies 1075 00:49:29,033 --> 00:49:31,033 is how much detail we see. 1076 00:49:31,033 --> 00:49:33,300 In these data that we're just getting, 1077 00:49:33,300 --> 00:49:35,666 we're seeing signatures of heavier elements, 1078 00:49:35,666 --> 00:49:37,900 even for very high redshift galaxies. 1079 00:49:37,900 --> 00:49:40,800 So you're seeing oxygen emission here. 1080 00:49:40,800 --> 00:49:42,700 We're also finding hydrogen lines. 1081 00:49:42,700 --> 00:49:45,133 We're finding neon. 1082 00:49:45,133 --> 00:49:47,033 So this is all kinds of detailed information 1083 00:49:47,033 --> 00:49:48,466 about galaxies in the first, 1084 00:49:48,466 --> 00:49:50,200 you know, 500 million years 1085 00:49:50,200 --> 00:49:51,866 that we've never, ever had before. 1086 00:49:51,866 --> 00:49:54,366   And so we're not just finding these galaxies and images, 1087 00:49:54,366 --> 00:49:56,666 we're actually characterizing them for the first time. 1088 00:49:56,666 --> 00:50:00,166 And so this is really exciting and revolutionary. 1089 00:50:00,166 --> 00:50:03,433 NARRATOR: But it also poses more questions than answers. 1090 00:50:03,433 --> 00:50:06,866 Detecting these heavy elements in such ancient galaxies 1091 00:50:06,866 --> 00:50:09,700 means the universe may have turned on its lights 1092 00:50:09,700 --> 00:50:11,833 much faster than predicted. 1093 00:50:11,833 --> 00:50:13,333 KARTALTEPE: So both the fact 1094 00:50:13,333 --> 00:50:16,200 that we're seeing a lot of high redshift, massive galaxies, 1095 00:50:16,200 --> 00:50:18,766 and the fact that we're seeing 1096 00:50:18,766 --> 00:50:21,033 chemically enriched galaxies at this time period, 1097 00:50:21,033 --> 00:50:22,933 gives us a bit of a mystery. 1098 00:50:22,933 --> 00:50:25,833 So why is it that stars would have either formed 1099 00:50:25,833 --> 00:50:27,433 earlier in the universe than we thought 1100 00:50:27,433 --> 00:50:28,900 or formed more rapidly, right? 1101 00:50:28,900 --> 00:50:31,433 Something about that process of star formation 1102 00:50:31,433 --> 00:50:34,033 is more efficient, is happening, you know, 1103 00:50:34,033 --> 00:50:37,066 more rapidly than we initially might have guessed. 1104 00:50:37,066 --> 00:50:41,066 OLUSEYI: We had models of how the first galaxies form, 1105 00:50:41,066 --> 00:50:43,966 how long it takes, what they look like, 1106 00:50:43,966 --> 00:50:46,300 and James Webb Space Telescope 1107 00:50:46,300 --> 00:50:48,366 completely blew these models apart, right? 1108 00:50:48,366 --> 00:50:51,866 We found that our models... 1109 00:50:51,866 --> 00:50:53,200 They were a little slow 1110 00:50:53,200 --> 00:50:54,566 in comparison to nature. 1111 00:50:54,566 --> 00:50:57,733 (murmuring) 1112 00:50:57,733 --> 00:51:00,766 KARTALTEPE: The fact that we're finding more than what most models predict 1113 00:51:00,766 --> 00:51:04,300 means there's something about those models that's incorrect. 1114 00:51:04,300 --> 00:51:06,566 And so I think the models of how these galaxies form 1115 00:51:06,566 --> 00:51:07,566 in the early universe 1116 00:51:07,566 --> 00:51:09,100 are going to have to change 1117 00:51:09,100 --> 00:51:13,700 to actually match the observations now. 1118 00:51:13,700 --> 00:51:16,033 NARRATOR: With each new telescope, 1119 00:51:16,033 --> 00:51:19,400 our picture of the universe is sharpened. 1120 00:51:19,400 --> 00:51:21,633 When you have new eyes, you discover new things. 1121 00:51:21,633 --> 00:51:24,233 And that's exactly what's happening here. 1122 00:51:24,233 --> 00:51:26,633 It's almost like discovering a new land, 1123 00:51:26,633 --> 00:51:27,933 discovering a new planet. 1124 00:51:27,933 --> 00:51:32,600 With Webb, we're discovering a new universe. 1125 00:51:32,600 --> 00:51:36,500 NARRATOR: JWST's first chapter of exploration 1126 00:51:36,500 --> 00:51:40,833 has demonstrated just how revolutionary it can be. 1127 00:51:40,833 --> 00:51:43,366 ROWE-GURNEY: It's surprising, every single time 1128 00:51:43,366 --> 00:51:45,833 we point the telescope at something new. 1129 00:51:45,833 --> 00:51:47,600 It hasn't really failed us yet. 1130 00:51:47,600 --> 00:51:51,700 JWST is doing exactly what we thought it would and more. 1131 00:51:51,700 --> 00:51:56,866 RIGBY: I know that we've built a telescope that is still 1132 00:51:56,866 --> 00:52:01,666 more capable, and we're just tapping into those abilities. 1133 00:52:01,666 --> 00:52:04,166 And so I think the next couple of years 1134 00:52:04,166 --> 00:52:05,766 are going to be tremendous, 1135 00:52:05,766 --> 00:52:08,766 and that we really haven't seen anything yet. 1136 00:52:08,766 --> 00:52:10,933 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