Full of Anti-LGBTQ Controversy, NASA’s New Telescope Name Is Protested

Giving a name to NASA’s new space telescope has received protests from many circles. The new telescope is named after James Webb who was an influential figure in the United States space agency during the 1960s to 1970s.

Controversy over the telescope’s name has circulated among professional and amateur astronomers for years. However, its imminent launch has pushed this issue into the public spotlight.

In the coming months, the James Webb Space Telescope will find its home in solar orbit, where it will spend years monitoring the cosmos. The launch is actually 14 years behind schedule originally planned.

The James Webb Space Telescope will be tasked with searching for light from ancient galaxies, distant exoplanets, and gases that may indicate life in other celestial bodies, according to the Gizmodo report.

The new space telescope will be the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, NASA’s pioneering space telescope. The problem is, the telescope’s scientific potential is overshadowed by the connotations of the character it takes for its name.

James Webb was NASA’s administrator during the “Lavender Scare,” an era that banned homosexuals from working for US government agencies. More than 1,200 people—mostly astronomers and diehard fans—have signed a petition urging NASA to rename the telescope.

The petition points to evidence such as the dismissal of NASA employee Clifford Norton, which took place under Webb’s leadership. Norton was arrested for his “gay activities”.

Norton was questioned by the police. In fact, he was also interrogated by NASA about his sexual activity.

NASA fired Norton from his position for “immoral behavior” and for having personality traits that made him “unsuitable for further government work.” While there is no evidence that Webb knew about the incident at the time, according to Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, a cosmologist at the University of New Hampshire, it does not absolve Webb of responsibility for the position he held at the time.

“Either he is a grossly incompetent administrator and doesn’t know that his chief of security is interrogating employees at a NASA facility, or he knows exactly what’s going on and he’s, in some ways, the one overseeing the interrogation of someone because he’s gay,” Prescod-Weinstein said. to NPR.

NASA is no stranger to controversial naming choices. They once renamed the asteroid after learning that its real name had Nazi connotations, according to the Futurism report.

In 2020, NASA vowed to stop using racial names for objects in space and announced the commitment to “examine the use of unofficial terminology for cosmic objects as part of its commitment to diversity, and inclusion.”

But this time the name of the space agency’s new telescope is said to have anti-LGBTQ connotations. And these things are considered not in accordance with the principles mentioned, become their commitment, and inclusion.

So far, NASA has not condemned Webb’s actions. “At this time we have found no evidence that warrants a name change to the James Webb Space Telescope,” NASA administrator Bill Nelson told NPR.

NASA has no plans to rename the billion-dollar James Webb Space Telescope, despite protests from astronomers, the public, and space agency employees. also said it had assessed Webb’s past actions and had shared some specifics about them for the investigation.

James Webb, an influential figure at NASA during the 1960s and 1970s, is alleged to have participated in the systematic discrimination against gay and lesbian employees during his tenure with the space agency. The controversy has led many to ask NASA to re-name the $10 billion telescope, which will launch in December 2021.

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