James Webb Travels A Million Miles Into Deep Space, Fired Up by Jean Baptiste-Mondino for Numero

Models Lydia Kloos and Dija Kallon turned their February 2021 fashion eyes into the FUTUR, anticipating the 10-months away, Christmas Day 2021 launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. Praying that she flies through the universe at epic speed as planned, Lydia and Dija were styled by Babeth Dijan in graphic, bold-colors loves from Europe’s biggest fashion houses for ‘Galactic’.

As we review our photographer archives for missing stories that AOC didn’t post in 2021 [Yes, AOC does do that], we couldn’t resist ‘Galactic’, lensed by Jean Baptiste-Mondino.

FLAWLESS PERFORMANCE REQUIRED

The fashion and beauty industries have an obsession with fixing women by making us flawless Buttons can be reattached, a broken-open seam re-stitched; a pimple zapped into inert skin rubble in an hour.

Not so for the James Webb where NOTHING — not the smallest issue that would require a human intervention like fixes on the international space station require all the time — can go wrong.

Having accidentally fallen in love with this year-old Numero editorial, we take this old-news fashion moment to share the great now news that James Webb left Earth on Christmas Day, flying atop an Ariane 5 rocket that lifted off from a spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Led by the Americans, the James Webb is an international collective effort of many nations to understand our origins. AOC is obsessed forever about the origin of our universe and the rise of humanity out of Africa and across our vast and endangered planet Earth.

NEVERTHELESS, SHE PERSISTED

NASA’s long-delayed $10 billion flying machine is now on its way, carrying the hopes and dreams of countless astronomers, astrophysicists, planetary scientists and ordinary people like Anne Enke into the final frontier.

Now we have our first fabulous good news about James Webb. On Sunday, while millions of humans were napping away Saturday’s Christmas Dinner, she successfully deployed a critical antenna in her first post-launch must-do.

The space telescope unfolded what scientists call a “gimbaled antenna assembly” that carries the high-rate data dish responsible for beaming Webb's observations of the early universe back to Earth.

"This antenna will be used to send at least 28.6 Gbytes of science data down from the observatory, twice a day," NASA officials wrote in a mission update. "The team has now released and tested the motion of the antenna assembly — the entire process took about one hour."

The James Webb is traveling back in time, set to broadcast information about “the universe's first stars and galaxies, sniff the atmospheres of nearby alien planets and perform a variety of other high-profile, high-impact work over the next five to 10 years, if all goes according to plan. “

FLAWLESS FOR REAL

Webb cannot get a pimple on her gorgeous face. Not a hair can fly out of place — or the entire mission collapses.

Unlike Kim K’s beloved SKIMS or Estee Lauder’s ‘Night Repair’, James Webb cannot be fixed with manual human intervention. She has been created by humans and a whole lot of technology — but now James Webb must fly and function flawlessly on her own, until she dies.

I beg you fashion and beauty people. Could we please stop trying to make women flawless and reserve the word ‘flawless’ for human achievements like the James Web Space Telescope? Not EVERY ultimate human achievement word needs to be on a bottle or buried in Spandex. [No offense intended, Kim. I love your SKIMS and don’t think you use that word ‘Flaws’, but I will check.]

Goddess speed, James Webb. AOC truly hopes that you succeed in telling us unimaginable scientific facts about our universe. Half the American people will say you are fake news, but we will broadcast every divine detail about your discoveries.

Sending love to an incredible flying machine carrying decades of human hopes onboard and total awe over what you might teach us about ourselves. Buckle up everyone. This could be the most amazing ride ever on planet Earth. And SHE needs a lot of help right now. ~ Anne

Related: Learn more about the James Webb Space Telescope

Mélanie Thierry Rules the Boys Club for Madame Figaro Oct. 1 by Jean-Baptiste Mondino

Mélanie Thierry Rules the Boys Club for Madame Figaro Oct. 1 by Jean-Baptiste Mondino AOC Fashion

French actor Mélanie Thierry wears the pants, styled by Barbara Baumel in French brands Majestic Filatures (tank) and Charvet (shirt and suspenders) mixed with Miu Miu pants on the covers of Madame Figaro’s October 1, 2021 issue.

Thierry’s a natural member of the boys club, wearing more menswear-inspired luxury from Alexander McQueen, Alexandre Vauthier, AMI Alexandre Mattiussi, Celine by Hedi Slimane, Intimissimi, Kristina Fidelskaya, Valentino and more lensed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino. / Hair by Nabil Harlow; makeup by Christophe Danchaud

A Sensual Sara Grace Wallerstedt by Jean-Baptiste Mondino for Numéro #225

A Sensual Sara Grace Wallerstedt by Jean-Baptiste Mondino for Numéro #225 AOC Fashion

Top model Sara Grace Wallerstedt is styled by Babeth Djian, founder and editor-in-chief of Numéro magazine. Djian, who is almost always photographed in black, chooses modern femme fatale, edgy style looks with an occasional hit of angelic white. The EIC infuses erotic tension with a delicate balance in the images lensed by Jean-Bapiste Mondino as ‘Stairway To Heaven’ in Numero #225./ Hair by Odile Gilbert; makeup by Lili Choi