<p>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Webb_Space_Telescope">James Webb Space Telescope</a> (JWST) will be Hubble 2.0, and, my personal favorite, it could get a better look at planets in other solar-systems than we've ever had.   Scheduled for launch in 2018.  (Footnote, as Rob Jeffries points out, it's infra-red through long-wave visible light only).   Hence, no Blue/Indigo/Violet or Green, but some yellow.   So, it's not quite like Hubble, but it's still often called Hubble's replacement.</p>

<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandra_X-ray_Observatory">Chandra</a> observes X-rays.</p>

<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spitzer_Space_Telescope">Spitzer</a> observes infra-red.    They both followed Hubble, but they're not the same type of telescope. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-10-10T08:48:37.887Z
JWST is designed to work in the infrared. Unlike Hubble, it will not view wavelengths below 600 nm, ie it is restricted, by design, to red and infrared wavelengths. HST only works as far as the near infrared.
ProfRob
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-10-28T03:18:38.073Z
JWST is the successor to Hubble in that it is the next of NASA's great observatories (billion dollar class telescopes). Other great observatories (besides Hubble) include lesser known telescopes such as the Compton Gamma Ray observatory, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Observatories_program
ehsteve
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-10-10T06:53:04.437Z
2015-10-10T09:19:26.407Z
2015-10-10T09:19:26.407Z
userLTK
<p><a href="http://wfirst.gsfc.nasa.gov/" rel="nofollow">WFRIST/AFTA</a> is probably the closest thing to Hubble that is going up. It has a similar 2.4 meter mirror will perform wide-field imaging and surveys of the near infrared.</p>

<p>It will have a Wide Field Instrument (WFI) which operates in the 0.7 - 2.0 micron range as well as a Coronagraphic Instrument (CGI) which operates in the 0.4 - 1.0 micron range. </p>

<p>Since most of the telescope hardware (called AFTA (Astrophysics-Focused Telescope Assets)) was donated by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to NASA, a lot of the telescope hardware already exists and does not need to be built so it's likely to be a 'quickly built' mission.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-03-17T16:02:33.037Z
2016-03-17T16:02:33.037Z
veda905
<p>Although the JWST is often touted as the successor to the HST, this isn't technically true, as Rob pointed out the JWST is designed to work in the infrared not optical wavelengths. One possible, more direct, successor could be the ATLAST (Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope) telescope, it would not only be able to observe in the optical but also infrared and ultraviolet. The primary mirror is planned to be between 8-16.8m in diameter and would be able to achieve up to 2'000 times better angular resolution than the Hubble can at present. It would make use of the newly developed Space Launch System (SLS) to place it into an L2 orbit (also where JWST is heading), and there are also plans to allow servicing missions to the telescope every 5-7 years (similar to how the HST was serviced in orbit) to enable astronomers to upgrade the instruments on-board.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/vYJJv.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/vYJJv.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

<p>However this telescope still hasn't left the drawing board and is unlikely to meet its 2025 launch date, funding for such a large telescope is guaranteed to cause a delay in construction as it would probably require an international collaboration just like the HST was jointly commissioned by ESA and NASA.</p>

<p>See:<a href="http://www.stsci.edu/atlast" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.stsci.edu/atlast</a> for references.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-03-17T16:33:08.640Z
2016-03-17T16:33:08.640Z
Dean
<p>Are there any plans for the 'Hubble2'? Maybe with an even bigger mirror capable of even finer resolution, to look even deeper into the origins of the universe?</p>

<p>If so, when can we expect to see it in action?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-10-10T07:15:41.393Z
Not a lens but mirror, modern large telescopes are virtually all reflectors of some ilk.
Conrad Turner
<hubble-telescope><photography>
Successor to the Hubble Telescope
JMP
# Successor to the Hubble Telescope

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-10-10)

Are there any plans for the 'Hubble2'? Maybe with an even bigger mirror capable of even finer resolution, to look even deeper into the origins of the universe?

If so, when can we expect to see it in action?

**Tags:** hubble-telescope, photography

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Not a lens but mirror, modern large telescopes are virtually all reflectors of some ilk.  

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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2015-10-10. Score: 7

The [James Webb Space Telescope](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Webb_Space_Telescope) (JWST) will be Hubble 2.0, and, my personal favorite, it could get a better look at planets in other solar-systems than we've ever had. Scheduled for launch in 2018. (Footnote, as Rob Jeffries points out, it's infra-red through long-wave visible light only). Hence, no Blue/Indigo/Violet or Green, but some yellow. So, it's not quite like Hubble, but it's still often called Hubble's replacement.

[Chandra](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandra_X-ray_Observatory) observes X-rays.

[Spitzer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spitzer_Space_Telescope) observes infra-red. They both followed Hubble, but they're not the same type of telescope.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: JWST is designed to work in the infrared. Unlike Hubble, it will not view wavelengths below 600 nm, ie it is restricted, by design, to red and infrared wavelengths. HST only works as far as the near infrared.  
> **username_4**: JWST is the successor to Hubble in that it is the next of NASA's great observatories (billion dollar class telescopes). Other great observatories (besides Hubble) include lesser known telescopes such as the Compton Gamma Ray observatory, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Spitzer. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Observatories_program  

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### Answer by username_5 on 2016-03-17. Score: 2

[WFRIST/AFTA](http://wfirst.gsfc.nasa.gov/) is probably the closest thing to Hubble that is going up. It has a similar 2.4 meter mirror will perform wide-field imaging and surveys of the near infrared.

It will have a Wide Field Instrument (WFI) which operates in the 0.7 - 2.0 micron range as well as a Coronagraphic Instrument (CGI) which operates in the 0.4 - 1.0 micron range.

Since most of the telescope hardware (called AFTA (Astrophysics-Focused Telescope Assets)) was donated by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to NASA, a lot of the telescope hardware already exists and does not need to be built so it's likely to be a 'quickly built' mission.


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### Answer by username_6 on 2016-03-17. Score: 1

Although the JWST is often touted as the successor to the HST, this isn't technically true, as Rob pointed out the JWST is designed to work in the infrared not optical wavelengths. One possible, more direct, successor could be the ATLAST (Advanced Technology Large-Aperture Space Telescope) telescope, it would not only be able to observe in the optical but also infrared and ultraviolet. The primary mirror is planned to be between 8-16.8m in diameter and would be able to achieve up to 2'000 times better angular resolution than the Hubble can at present. It would make use of the newly developed Space Launch System (SLS) to place it into an L2 orbit (also where JWST is heading), and there are also plans to allow servicing missions to the telescope every 5-7 years (similar to how the HST was serviced in orbit) to enable astronomers to upgrade the instruments on-board.

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/vYJJv.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/vYJJv.jpg)

However this telescope still hasn't left the drawing board and is unlikely to meet its 2025 launch date, funding for such a large telescope is guaranteed to cause a delay in construction as it would probably require an international collaboration just like the HST was jointly commissioned by ESA and NASA.

See:<http://www.stsci.edu/atlast> for references.


---

