The primary mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope is comprised of 18 individual mirror segments arranged in a hexagonal pattern. Each of the gold-coated beryllium mirrors measures 4.2ft (1.3m) across and weighs 88lbs (40kg). Once fully deployed in space, the individual segments will function as a single 21.3ft (6.5m) diameter mirror.
The mirrors were installed over the course of several months and required sub-millimeter accuracy in order to ensure the correct optical alignment. A laser-guided robotic arm was used to steer the mirrors into the correct position prior to bolting. The gold-coated mirrors were covered by protective cases during the installation process that will be removed prior to launch.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the scientific successor to NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and is scheduled to launch in October 2018. The much larger mirror (6.5m vs 2.4m) will allow for the imaging of even more distant/ancient celestial objects.
Source: https://youtu.be/1d1sHLkmNQI
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