How the Webb Space Telescope Got So Expensive

Posted by timothy on Saturday September 10, 2011 @08:40AM from the pity-we-can't-short-the-stock dept.

First time accepted submitter IICV writes "Ethan Siegel of Starts with a Bang has done some research on how and why the James Webb Space Telescope's price tag ballooned. Quoting: 'Something wasn't adding up. How could the telescope be more than three-quarters complete after $3.5 billion, but require more than double that amount to finish it? Also, how did the launch date get bumped by three years, to 2018? And how did 6.5 billion become a disastrous $8.7 billion so quickly? So I did a little digging around, and perhaps a little investigative reporting as well, and got ahold of a Webb Project Scientist who's also a member of the Webb Science Working Group.'" Whether or not you buy the argument that the money's well-spent (at $5 billion or $8 billion, or either side of these), even the work in progress is beautiful.

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First Time Poster, Here by Anonymous Coward · 2011-09-10 09:05 · Score: -1, Offtopic

What's with this 'first time accepted submitter' crap?
The person might very well have submitted under another username in the past.
True first-time submitters are great, but I'd hope the bulk of the stories are by people who've been around here a bit longer.
Really, this is slashdot, not some grade-school classroom where everyone is encouraged to do their best.