NASA's James Webb Space Telescope captured detailed infrared imagery of IC 348, a star-forming region approximately 1,000 light-years away in the constellation Perseus, released around September 15–16, 2026. The observation identified brown dwarfs with masses as low as twice that of Jupiter, marking the least massive brown dwarfs ever detected.
NASA is preparing to launch a newly converted spy satellite as a space telescope that will work alongside the James Webb Space Telescope in orbit. The repurposed satellite represents an unusual application of military reconnaissance hardware for scientific research.