Top Scientist Exposed for Faking Image of Space
The James Webb Space Telescope might not have given us a view of “Proxima Centauri,” but it has provided some of the most detailed images of space we’ve ever seen.
The internet was set ablaze after news broke that a well-respected and highly celebrated French scientist doctored photos of a distant star.
Last Sunday Étienne Klein, physicist and director of France's Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, shared a post to his 91,000 followers with a caption stating, "Picture of Proxima Centauri, the nearest star to the Sun, located 4.2 light years away from us. It was taken by the James Webb Space Telescope. This level of detail... A new world is unveiled everyday
The image was actually a slice of chorizo. Some of his followers caught on and started sharing the “star” from different angles. But much of the internet believed the image at face value.
After facing backlash online, Kleinback-tracked and said it was a prank, "In view of certain comments, I feel obliged to specify that this tweet showing an alleged picture of Proxima Centauri was a joke. Let's learn to be wary of the arguments from positions of authority as much as the spontaneous eloquence of certain images."
The James Webb Space Telescope might not have given us a view of “Proxima Centauri,” but it has provided some of the most detailed images of space we’ve ever seen. From the Carina Nebula to the Southern Ring Nebula, the telescope has captured the deepest corners of our universe.