The new space telescope used to capture "groundbreaking" images of the cosmos is named after former Nasa administrator James E Webb. While the pictures have captured the imagination of the world, the choice of name has proved controversial.
The first full-colour pictures from the Sun-orbiting observatory were released on Tuesday (July 12). Astronomers hope the $10 billion (£8.4bn) flagship James Webb Space Telescope will help us better understand the universe.
Among the subjects of the initial batch of images were the Carina Nebula, Stephan’s Quintet, the Southern Ring and a cluster of galaxies nearly five billion light years away known as SMACS 0723. All have been captured in significantly more detail than Webb’s predecessor, Hubble.
