Technology for the next generation space telescope

The Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) is a major element of NASA’s Origins Program. It is planned to be a deployable infrared telescope with an 8m diameter aperture and a sensitivity =lo00 times greater than any currently existing infrared telescope. The scientific goals of NGST include imaging and spectroscopic characterization of the earliest galaxies and proto-galaxies, which formed following the “big bang”. Several years ago, NASA embarked on an aggressive technology development effort covering a number of technical areas including optics, detectors, deployable structures, wavefront control, passive cooling, operations, etc. This paper presents an overview of the status of the program NASA is pursuing to provide the necessary technologies, which will enable an exciting, affordable NGST mission