Yuma, Arizona - The Yuma County Library District (YCLD) has joined almost 500 sites across the country to celebrate the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s next great space science observatory. YCLD will offer a range of public programs to bring the excitement of STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) to children, teens and adults.

Webb is the largest and most complex space science telescope ever built – the premier observatory of the next decade. This international mission, led by NASA in partnership with the European and Canadian space agencies, will launch in December 2021.

The observatory will provide a new view of the cosmos and push the field of astronomy into a new era. The telescope will observe the universe in the infrared, peering inside dust clouds to study light from distant parts of the universe for the very first time – the first galaxies that formed about 13.5 billion years ago – and give us insight into how our universe formed. It will also explore distant worlds in other solar systems, as well as objects in our own solar system. Webb will extend the scientific discoveries of other NASA missions like the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite.
 
On Saturday, December 18th, celebrate the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope! Find out how the telescope works and what its missions are. There is no charge to attend.

Saturday, December 18th
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Main Library, 2951 S 21st Drive Yuma, AZ 85364

Saturday, December 18th
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Foothills Library, 13226 E South Frontage Rd Yuma, AZ 85367
 
To learn more about the Webb telescope, visit webb.nasa.gov. For information about other Webb community event locations, visit webb.nasa.gov/content/features/celebrateWebb.html.

For more information, call (928) 782-1871.