What was JWST called before it was renamed in 2002?

What was JWST called before it was renamed in 2002? JWST was called the Next Generation Space Telescope.

The project began in the 1990s as NASA planned a powerful infrared successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. Its original name, usually abbreviated NGST, described its purpose rather than honoring an individual: it was intended to be the next major space-based observatory for studying the early universe, galaxy formation, stars, and planets around other stars.

In 2002, NASA renamed the project the James Webb Space Telescope after James E. Webb, NASA’s second administrator. Webb led the agency from 1961 to 1968, covering the Mercury, Gemini, and early Apollo programs, and promoted scientific research as a central part of NASA’s mission.

The renaming did not mark the telescope’s launch. Webb was launched much later, on 25 December 2021, and began science operations after reaching its orbit near the Sun–Earth L2 point.