NASA will release the first images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope on July 12 in a live broadcast beginning at 10:30AM. Images will simultaneously be available on social media and this website. The images will be of these objects:

• Carina Nebula — one of the largest and brightest nebulae in the sky, located approximately 7,600 light-years away.
• WASP-96 b — a giant planet outside our solar system, nearly 1,150 light-years from Earth.
• Southern Ring Nebula — a planetary nebula (expanding cloud of gas surrounding a dying star), approximately 2,000 light years from Earth.
• Stephan’s Quintet — the first compact galaxy group ever discovered (in 1877), about 290 million light-years away
• SMACS 0723 — Galaxy clusters in the foreground that magnify and distort the light of objects behind them, permitting a deep field view of extremely distant and faint galaxy populations.

Separately, the Christa McAuliffe Center at Framingham State University will host a free open house on July 29, 6PM-9PM, to celebrate the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope. Participants will be able to ask NASA Solar System Ambassadors questions about the universe and explore the night sky with telescopes. A keynote presentation will talk about the Webb Space Telescope and the first images received from it, and there will be free-choice learning activities related to astro imaging. For directions, use 7 Maynard Rd in Framingham. Face masks are required indoors.

Boston’s Museum of Science will host a free, evening-long, locally focused, deliberative, in-person forum — Extreme Heat Boston — on July 20, 7PM-9PM. Using materials developed by working with community groups and civic partners, participants will explore local extreme heat issues using community science collected data, local resilience plans, and a strong call to action. Snacks will be provided. Masks and optional and encouraged. This event is supported by the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration and the Lowell Institute. Register here.

The Discovery Museum (177 Main Street, Acton) will offer free admission on summer Fridays, 4:30PM-8PM. (Treehouse and Discovery Woods close at dusk.) Reservations are required and can be made 10 days in advance. Donations of non-perishable food will be gratefully received for Open Table and the Acton Food Pantry.

The Discovery Museum will also host drop-in sessions of the amazing Caterpillar Lab on July 5-6, 9AM-Noon and 1PM-4PM.

As part of its 40th anniversary celebration, the Discovery Museum (177 Main Street, Acton) will host its first STEM + Movie Night on the Lawn on June 23 (rain date June 24). Admission to the event is free; the museum will be closed except for access to bathrooms. Activities start at 7:30PM and the movie, A Bug’s Life, will start at 8PM. Advance reservations are not required. Upcoming STEM + Movie Nights on the Lawn will be:

• FernGully – July 21, 7:30 activities, 8:30 movie start (rain date July 22)
• Hidden Figures – August 11, 7:00 activities, 8:00 movie start (rain date August 12)

The Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (STARS) at New England Sci-Tech (16 Tech Circle, Natick) and the Wellesley Amateur Radio Society will both participate in the worldwide Amateur Radio Field Day with their own family-friendly events open to the public on June 25-26.

• The STARS event in Natick event will be open to the public June 25, 2PM-5PM and June 26, 10AM-2PM. Sign up on the form on this page. STARS will offer educational demonstrations, maker activities, tours, soldering workshops, and telescope viewing (weather permitting). The Field Day will operate outside in vans and tents using auxiliary power to simulate emergency conditions, but the building will be open. You will not need a radio license to participate in the radio practice and contests, as you can operate with one of the club’s General or Extra class licensees as the control operator. On-site training will be provided. Bonus:  NEST’s Yard Sale continues and will be open June 26, 9AM-Noon.
• The Wellesley Amateur Radio Society will celebrate Amateur Radio Field Day with an event at the gazebo in the Needham War Memorial Park, open to public June 25 afternoon and June 26 morning.

Newton families with students in ages 4-16 — who are interested in STEM and/or robotics (or think they may be!) — are invited to a free information session about First Lego League (FLL), on Wednesday, June 22, 7:30-8:00PM, hosted by Newton’s high school robotics team, the LigerBots. Parents, guardians, students, and potential mentors can learn about how the FLL season and competitions run, what is required to participate, and what students can gain from the experience. This Info Night will be held at Newton South High School. Sign up here.

FIRST Lego League (FLL) is an annual robotics competition in which teams of 2-10 students build a robot, solve engineering challenges, and learn in a friendly competition. FLL offers different divisions for ages 4-6, 6-10, and 9-16+.

Several students currently on the LigerBots started in robotics by participating in FLL, and the high-school team has been extremely generous in mentoring Newton FLL teams and hosting two major FLL competitions each year. The Info Night speakers will include past FLL participants, ready to share experiences and answer questions. They will provide information on how students can start their own teams — and how adult do not need backgrounds in engineering to be successful FLL coaches! For more information, email cso@ligerbots.com