Astronomy Club hosts talk on space telescope

The Sisters Astronomy Club will host Dr. Ron Polidan, former NASA scientist, to speak about the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at their meeting on Tuesday, February 15, at 7 p.m.

It will be a virtual meeting only, accessible online to anyone through Zoom by clicking on the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81963561802?pwd=MmZZVzVNVmJPeUlROG04dEZROEdZQT09.

Polidan will discuss the development history and technology of the JWST, its launch and in-space deployment, current status, and plans for its commissioning. Easily the most complex space science observatory ever built, the JWST is expected by many astrophysicists to offer new insights into the nature and possible origin of the universe.

Polidan is an astrophysicist/space technologist who has over 45 years of space mission experience. He retired and moved to Oregon in 2016. He unretired in 2020 and is currently employed by Lunar Resources, Inc., a space industrialization company based in Houston, Texas, as their director of programs.