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Astrophysics: The James Webb Space Telescope – From First Light to New World Views

Proceedings of the Working Group 
27-29 February 2024
Ewine F. van Dishoeck (ed.)
Scripta Varia 155, LEV, Vatican City, 2025
pp. 374 | ISBN: 978-88-266-0960-7
DOI: 10.65398/IUUU6176

Contents

A Brief History of the James Webb Space Telescope

Marcia Rieke

Session 1: Exoplanets, New Worlds

Characterizing Exoplanetary Atmospheres

Jonathan J. Fortney

The Hycean Paradigm in the Search for Life Elsewhere

Nikku Madhusudhan

Deep Reconnaissance of Exoplanet Atmospheres Through Multi-Instrument Spectroscopy

Nikole K. Lewis

The Mid-IR View of Exoplanet Atmospheres

Michiel Min

Early Snapshots of Other Worlds with the James Webb Space Telescope

Sasha Hinkley

Do Temperate Rocky Planets Around M Dwarfs have an Atmosphere?

René Doyon

Session 2: High-Redshift Universe

Star-Formation in Cosmic-Dawn Galaxies

Sandro Tacchella

Emergence of Early Large-Scale Structures of Galaxies Revealed by JWST

Takahiro Morishita

The Physics of First Galaxies: Fresh Results from JWST

Adriano Fontana

The Earliest Galaxies – A MIRI Perspective

Steve Gillman

Creating the James Webb Space Telescope’s First Color Images

Klaus Pontoppidan

Session 3: Outreach and Public Engagement with JWST

Introduction and summary

Pedro Russo

Panel Discussion

The Planning for the First JWST Images: Lesson Learned and an Outlook to the Future

Antonella Nota

Engaging with Diverse Audiences Through the Wonders of JWST in Canada and Beyond

Nathalie Nguyen-Quoc Ouellette

Outreach by a Large, International Collaboration

Marcia Rieke

Outreach and Public Engagement with JWST: Extragalactic Examples

Jeyhan Kartaltepe

Examples of JWST Outreach in the Netherlands

Ewine F. van Dishoeck

Session 4: Life cycle of stars and ISM

Star Formation at Low Metallicity: James Webb Space Telescope Results From Imaging and Spectroscopy

Margaret Meixner, et al.

Illuminating Planet Formation: The Role of Ultraviolet Radiation From Massive Stars in the Physics and Chemistry of Planet Forming Disks

Olivier Berné

Early Formation of Planetary Building Blocks in Icy Molecular Clouds

Melissa K. McClure

Protostellar Chemistry in Ice and Gas

Yao-Lun Yang

Formation of Sun-Like Stars in the JWST Era: Protostellar Outflows, Jets, and Disks

Łukasz Tychoniec

Session 5: Societal Impact of the James Webb Space Telescope

Introduction

Massimo Stiavelli

Panel Discussion

Societal impact of the James Webb Space Telescope and astronomy

Matt Mountain

Societal Impact of Astronomy and JWST

Gillian Wright

Societal Impact of JWST and Astronomy

Kevin Govender

Preservation of Dark and Quiet Sky

Piero Benvenuti

SESSION 6: Protoplanetary disks

JWST Observations of Protoplanetary Disks

Colette Salyk

JWST: A New Window Into the Chemistry of Planet-Forming Disks

Inga Kamp

Using JWST to Study the Delivery of Water and Solids to Rocky Planets

Andrea Banzatti

Planetary Debris Disks: Another Perspective on Exoplanetary Systems

George Rieke, et al.

Session 7: Outreach and Public Engagement in Astronomy

Introduction and summary

Lars Lindberg Christensen

Panel Discussion

Colorful Cosmos: Transcending our Worldviews Through Astronomical Imaging

Lars Lindberg Christensen

“But are the colors real?”— Opportunities for data literacy, art collaborations and social justice

Claudia Mignone

Astronomy outreach — Reaching for representation and visibility

Teresa Paneque-Carreño

Session 8: Philosophical perspectives, new world views

Philosophy and Religion in the Age of JWST

Guy Consolmagno

Astronomy and Religion Dialogue in the Age of JWST

Karin I. Öberg

At Home in the Universe?

Thomas Hertog

Is the ‘Big Bang’ Physics or Metaphysics?

Martin J. Rees

A Responsibility to Awe - Some Thoughts on the James Webb Telescope From the Perspective of a Dutch Poet

Marjolijn van Heemstra

Session 9: Galaxy evolution

A (Non-Comprehensive) Overview of the On-going Galaxy Evolution Paradigm Shift with JWST at “Low” Redshift (z ≲ 8 − 9)

Stacey Alberts

New Views of Star Formation, Feedback, and Dust In Nearby Galaxies with JWST

Janice C Lee, et al.

Star Formation in Galaxies Across Cosmic Times

Karina I. Caputi

A New View of Galaxy Assembly Enabled by JWST Spectroscopy

Anna de Graaff

The Structural Evolution of Galaxies in the Early Universe

Jeyhan S. Kartaltepe

Session 10: Solar system

Solar System Science with JWST: Revealing the Volatile Ingredients for Planet Formation

Stefanie N. Milam

The Giant Planets in Our Solar System Observed by the James Webb Space Telescope

Henrik Melin

Juno & JWST: Joint Journeys Judging Jovian Geneses

Jonathan I. Lunine

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