Introduction
JWST Programs
The science program for JWST falls into three parts: observations undertaken by instrument team leads and members of the Science Working Group who are Guaranteed Time Observers; observations proposed by the community and selected through a dual-anonymous peer review process as the General Observer program; and observations selected by the STScI Director for various purposes. More details about each of those programs are given below.
New calls for General Observer proposals are anticipated once per year during JWST science operations.
Types of JWST Programs
The Guaranteed Time Observations (GTO) program is designed to reward scientists who helped develop the key hardware and software components or technical and inter-disciplinary knowledge for JWST. The observing time over the first three cycles will be allocated to these scientists, who include the:
- Principal Investigators of the four science instruments (MIRI, NIRCam, NIRISS, and NIRSpec)
- U.S. MIRI Science Lead and Science Team members
- Six Interdisciplinary Scientists (IDS)
- Telescope Scientist
General Observers (GO) programs provide the worldwide astronomical community with opportunities to apply for observation time with JWST in a given cycle (generally 1 year in duration). Varieties of proposal categories are available. For more information, see JDox.
Important Dates for Cycle 3 GO Programs
Deadline | Task |
---|---|
July 1, 2024 |
Cycle 3 observations begin |
Important Dates for Cycle 4 GO Programs
Deadline | Task |
---|---|
August 1, 2024 |
Cycle 4 GO Call for Proposals released |
October 16, 2024 |
Cycle 4 GO proposals due |
February 3 - February 14, 2025 |
Cycle 4 Telescope Allocation Committee (TAC) review |
~March 5, 2025 |
Cycle 4 GO program selections released |
July 1, 2025 |
Cycle 4 observations begin |
Director’s Discretionary-Early Release Science (DD-ERS)
To help the scientific community quickly learn JWST's instruments and capabilities, STScI, in consultation with the JWST Advisory Committee, developed the Director’s Discretionary-Early Release Science (DD-ERS) program with goals to:
- Ensure open access to representative datasets in support of the preparation of Cycle 2 proposals.
- Engage a broad cross-section of the astronomical community in familiarizing themselves with JWST data and scientific capabilities.
View the Approved ERS Programs
Director's Discretionary Time-Critical Observations (starting in Cycle 2)
Director’s Discretionary Time (DDT) can be requested for time-critical observations that cannot plausibly be scheduled for the regular proposal cycle. These types of proposals might be appropriate for the:
- Follow-up of newly-discovered unexpected transient phenomena or when developments since the last proposal cycle make a time-critical observation necessary
- Timely follow-up of new discoveries that will provide a critical link in the understanding of the phenomena
The Call for Time-Critical DD proposals is open. For more information about DDT proposal preparation, see JDox.
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The NASA James Webb Space Telescope, developed in partnership with ESA and CSA, is operated by AURA’s Space Telescope Science Institute.