Seeing our History with the James Webb Space Telescope

At the December 2021 Hertz Innovation Hour, Hertz Fellow and Nobel Laureate John Mather will discuss his work on the James Webb Space Telescope, the largest, most powerful, and complex space telescope ever built and launched into space.

The James Webb Space Telescope, almost ready for launch, will observe the physical history, from the first objects that grew after the Big Bang, to the formation of stars and planets happening today, and surprises are likely. Mather will show how Webb works and what we will observe.

The laws of physics lead to instabilities on all scales, from cosmic to submicroscopic, and the spontaneous growth of the unlimited complexity of life. Now we know each of us is made of 30 trillion cells, and each cell is a digital bio-computer reading its DNA instructions and interacting with the others. How far can we go, and who are “we”?

This Hertz Foundation Innovation Hour will take place live on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, from 12:00–1:00 p.m. Pacific, using the Zoom video conference platform. You can attend on a desktop, mobile device, or by phone. Please register using the form below, and we'll email you the Zoom meeting information.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.