Artist's concept: NASA GSFC/CIL/Adriana Manrique Gutierrez
ARLINGTON, Va. TheJames Webb Space Telescope Flight Operations Subsystem Development Team at Raytheon Technologies was recently recognized with a NASA Group Achievement Award for its contributions in developing the Webb Flight Operations Subsystem (FOS).
The Flight Operations Subsystem is vital for the James Webb Space Telescope's smooth and efficient functioning. Developed by Raytheon, its core software handles command and control, telemetry analysis, ground contact scheduling, observation plan management, and data retrieval for astronomers and the scientific community worldwide. In orbit, the ground-control software monitors observatory health and performance, providing valuable insights to the Mission Operations team.
The James Webb Space Telescope is a large optical telescope -- an international project led by NASA, with the European Space Agency (ESA), the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), and a number of other partners and companies -- that is in L2 orbit around the sun [a spot in space 1.5 million km from Earth that lies opposite the sun that enables the telescope to stay in line with Earth as it orbits the sun] currently conducting infrared astronomy to view objects too old, too far away, or too faint to be detected by the Hubble Space Telescope.
According to Raytheon officials, the company's software core handles everything in the Webb's flight-operations subsystem from command and control, to ground-contact scheduling, data retrieval, and more. Rick Peralta, a Raytheon Intelligence & Space engineering fellow and electrical & optical engineer who worked on delivering Webb’s focal plane arrays, said "Webb can see back 13.5 billion years in time, not long after the creation of the universe. I’m looking forward to it discovering something unexpected that alters the way that we think about things.”
The subsystem went live on December 25, 2022, during Webb’s launch, providing 24/7 command-and-control capabilities; the Flight Operations Subsystem supports more than 200 international external users worldwide.
Walt Burns, who served as the Raytheon Technologies Webb program manager from 2003 to 2022, accepted the award on behalf of the entire team at the 2022 NASA Honor Awards Ceremony held at Goddard Space Flight Center, Maryland. Upon accepting the award, Burns said: "This recognition highlights NASA's appreciation for our team's exceptional efforts in developing the Flight Operations Subsystem for the James Webb Space Telescope. I want to express my gratitude to each member of the team for their creativity, perseverance and personal sacrifices that have ensured the FOS played a vital role in the mission's accomplishments."
