AUSTIN (KXAN) — A pair of University of Texas at Austin researchers are at the forefront of the country’s latest venture in space exploration.

As the James Webb Telescope launched Saturday morning from French Guiana in South America, it’s expected to tell researchers more about the Milky Way. It’s going to look straight into clouds of gas and dust in our galaxy, almost like it’s traveling through time.

UT professor Steven Finkelstein said the telescope will take about six months to get into proper position about a million miles from Earth.

“You’re basically strapping a bomb to the $10 billion telescope,” Finkelstein said about the launch. “It’s really exciting to go up without a hitch. I think that was the most amazing part for me.”

Along with Finkelstein, Caitlin Casey is working on the project once the telescope gets into place.

The fuel for the telescope to keep its position is expected to last around 10 years.