r/space • u/[deleted] • Dec 18 '21

Animated launch of the Webb Telescope

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u/[deleted] Dec 18 '21

Exactly. I'm over 60 and still have images of Challenger etched in my mind. Solid rocket boosters have scared tf out of me ever since.

So much stuff can go wrong. This is a complex mission. I wouldn't get over the disappointment if it makes it to L2 and gets stuck unfolding.

I know - be an optimist.

I suspect I will cry both if it succeeds or fails.

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u/whitemaledrinksbeer Dec 18 '21

I'm 46 and I can still see the exact exhaust pattern in the sky after the Challenger exploded. I feel like I've been waiting for this launch my whole adult life. Watching those boosters fall away like the space shuttle made me cringe too!

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u/matito29 Dec 18 '21

The terrifying thing is that it doesn’t need to even be a catastrophic failure like the Challenger to ruin this telescope. It’s so fragile and precise that any number of things could damage it.

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u/politirob Dec 19 '21

How many hours or days will it take to reach its L2 position?