Baby formula, freeze-dried food, scratch-resistant lenses, athletic shoes, cordless vacuum cleaner, phone cameras……What do the above items have in common?

They are all spin-offs of space technology… really down-to-earth!

From the 25-year planning, development, construction and calibration of the James Webb Space Telescope (Webb), scientists and engineers overcame numerous technical challenges and obstacles. One of the spin-offs is "Wavefront Sensing and Control".

This technique analyses the shape of an incident beam's wavefront to identify and correct the distortion or misalignment of light as it travels through optical components.

Ophthalmologists use the same technology to measure aberrations of the eye for diagnosis and treatment. It helps get a detailed map of the eye through a 3-second mapping and scanning process that used to take hours to complete in the past.

The "Golden Eye" not only explores the Universe, its spin-off also helps improve our vision indirectly!

Webb has completed several alignment procedures and released its first batch of images. It's just around the corner that the Webb team will release the first scientific data next month. Stay tuned!