James Webb Space Telescope

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a large, infrared-optimized space telescope launched on 25 December 2021. It is a joint project between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The primary scientific objectives of the JWST include studying the early universe, galaxy formation and evolution, and the formation of stars and planetary systems. The telescope is also used to study the atmospheres of exoplanets to search for signs of life. The JWST is positioned at the second Lagrange point (L2) of the Earth-Sun system, located about 1.5 million km (930,000 mi) away from Earth, and uses a 6.5-meter primary mirror to collect and focus infrared light from the most distant objects in the universe.

James Webb Space Telescope is currently in the constellation of Sagittarius. The current Right Ascension of James Webb Space Telescope is 18h 17m 54s and the Declination is -33° 37’ 46” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt).

Today's rise, transit and set times of James Webb Space Telescope from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.

Available Resources

• Position and finder charts (see also Where is James Webb Space Telescope?)
• Distance from Earth (see also How far is James Webb Space Telescope from Earth?)
• When does James Webb Space Telescope rise and set?
• Interactive orbit visualization. 3d visualization showing the orbit of James Webb Space Telescope with respect to the major Solar System objects.
• 15 days ephemerides. Table showing celestial coordinates and magnitude of James Webb Space Telescope for the past and next 7 days.
• Interactive sky chart. An online planetarium application that shows where to locate James Webb Space Telescope in the sky from your location.
• Live position tracker. A high precision sky chart that uses real deep sky imagery to help locate James Webb Space Telescope with your telescope or on your astrophotographies.

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where James Webb Space Telescope is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

Also check out Where is James Webb Space Telescope?, a page that provides all the information needed to find James Webb Space Telescope in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

James Webb Space Telescope Distance from Earth

The distance of James Webb Space Telescope from Earth is currently 1,710,195 kilometers, equivalent to 0.011432 Astronomical Units. Light takes 5.7046 seconds to travel from James Webb Space Telescope and arrive to us.

The following chart shows the distance of James Webb Space Telescope from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.

The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of James Webb Space Telescope from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of James Webb Space Telescope to Earth

Between 26 December 2021 and 5 March 2025, the closest approach of James Webb Space Telescope to Earth happens on Sun Dec 26 2021 at a distance of 0.000894 Astronomical Units, or 133,698 kilometers:

NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.

Visualization of James Webb Space Telescope Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of James Webb Space Telescope with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of James Webb Space Telescope and the planets along their orbits in this diagram accurately represents the current configuration of the objects in the Solar System. This is an experimental feature and it requires a WebGL enabled browser. Please provide us feedback!

James Webb Space Telescope 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of James Webb Space Telescope computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate James Webb Space Telescope in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date	Right AscensionR.A.	DeclinationDec.	MagnitudeMag	Constellation
2023 May 29	18h 02m 42s	-30° 53’ 39”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 May 30	18h 04m 45s	-31° 16’ 00”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 May 31	18h 06m 45s	-31° 37’ 49”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 01	18h 08m 43s	-31° 59’ 02”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 02	18h 10m 37s	-32° 19’ 41”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 03	18h 12m 30s	-32° 39’ 48”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 04	18h 14m 21s	-32° 59’ 24”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 05	18h 16m 08s	-33° 18’ 25”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 06	18h 17m 50s	-33° 36’ 56”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 07	18h 19m 29s	-33° 54’ 56”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 08	18h 21m 03s	-34° 12’ 24”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 09	18h 22m 32s	-34° 29’ 21”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 10	18h 23m 56s	-34° 45’ 46”	N.A.	Sagittarius
2023 Jun 11	18h 25m 14s	-35° 01’ 37”	N.A.	Sagittarius