Neptune and its rings shown in striking new light by Webb telescope

Farthest planet from sun and its satellites revealed in unprecedented detail by space telescope's infrared imager

The James Webb space telescope has turned its gaze away from the deep universe towards our home solar system, capturing an image of a luminous Neptune and its delicate, dusty rings in detail not seen in decades.

The last time astronomers had such a clear view of the farthest planet from the sun was when Nasa's Voyager 2 became the first and only space probe to fly past the ice giant for just a few hours in 1989.