The launch of a new NASA telescope originally scheduled to take place October 2018 has been pushed back again to allow time for further testing, the US space agency says.
The new target date for the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope is now approximately May 2020, NASA said. The telescope's hardware is complete, but problems with the integration of the spacecraft with the observatory itself have come to light.
Recent findings from the project's review board indicate more time is needed to test and integrate components, a NASA news release said.
"Considering the investment NASA and our international partners have made, we want to proceed systematically through these last tests, with the additional time necessary, to be ready for a May 2020 launch," NASA official Thomas Zurbuchen said in the news release.
NASA has touted the Webb as the biggest astronomical space science telescope ever built. It will succeed NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in exploring mysteries of the solar system.
The 6.5-metre telescope element must be joined with the spacecraft element to form the complete observatory. The spacecraft element consists of the tennis-court-sized sun shield and the spacecraft bus, which houses the flight avionics, power system and solar panels.
The telescope's large size meant engineers had to design components that fold origami-style into the Ariane 5 rocket provided by the European Space Agency (ESA).
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