James Webb Space Telescope Exhibit at 4th USA Science & Engineering Festival

NASA is partnering with the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) to bring the James Webb and Hubble Space Telescopes to the 4th U.S.A. Science & Engineering Festival from April 16 and 17, 2016 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Place, NW, Washington, D.C. 20001.

Free to the public, the NASA exhibit will highlight the Webb and Hubble space telescopes. Visitors can talk with scientists and engineers who will share how Webb will inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers to push the boundaries of science and technology.

The Webb telescope will allow scientists to peer ever farther into the cosmos, seeing things no previous telescope can see and explore the formation of the first stars and galaxies. Webb is expected to launch in 2018.

NASA’s Hubble telescope will be celebrating its 26th year of operation in April and visitors will be able to explore Hubble’s discoveries on a large interactive touchscreen known as the WorldWide Telescope. Participants will also be able to use interactive software to explore light, color, and the connection to the need for NASA to have a fleet of telescopes that observe across the electromagnetic spectrum, including the future James Webb Space Telescope.

Participants can explore how astronomers create multi-colored images from data taken with NASA’s Hubble and future Webb telescope. Students will interact with use red and blue filter glasses and multi-colored LED lights to explore how astronomers create the iconic multicolor images they see from the Hubble Space Telescope.

Visitors can explore a 3-D augmented reality structure of Webb telescope. This is done via an application on a smartphone/tablet that will be supplied at the event. The application reads the information on the ~1-meter cube and projects a 3-D image of the Webb telescope. Participants can walk around the cube to see all sides/angles of the Webb.

In addition, visitors can experience infrared light to better understand how the Webb telescope will look at the universe. They can apply ice cubes to their faces to see how they look in infrared light.

The 4th USA Science & Engineering Festival, the largest and only national science festival, features nationwide contests and school programs, including the ‘Nifty Fifty’ science speaker program and X-STEM Symposium. Expo hours run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday April 16 and from 10 .a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 17. More than 350,000 attendees will celebrate science at the Expo, and engage in activities with some of the biggest names in STEM, hear stories of inspiration and courage, and enjoy show performances.

The closest Metro stop is the Mt. Vernon Square/7th St-Convention Center station. For attendee information, visit: http://www.usasciencefestival.org/attendees/attendee-faq.html.

For information about the DC Convention Center, visit: www.dcconvention.com

For the USA Science Festival, visit: http://www.usasciencefestival.org

For more information about the James Webb Space Telescope, visit: jwst.nasa.gov or www.nasa.gov/webb