This is HD84406. It is one of the many stars that you will see in the constellation Ursa Major. Scientists chose to photograph this star because it is not around other stars with the same brightness. Now you might wonder where the star is in this picture. The answer is: it's all of the bright spots in the photo.
Why is that the case? That's because the telescope that took this photo, the James Webb Space Telescope, has 18 primary mirror segments. And this is where the challenging part comes in: the team behind the Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) instrument (the tool used by the telescope) will have to adjust the mirror segments until the images become one bright star. This photo of the HD84406 has been helpful in the process. The team has successfully identified which bright spot corresponds with which mirror.
Aside from the image, the team also took a selfie of the telescope's primary mirror. The selfie was made possible by the specialized imaging lens inside the NIRCam instrument. The lens will also help the team confirm if the alignment is good.
(Images: NASA)
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