GoKawiilNASA’s $4.3 billion Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, equipped with a 300-megapixel camera sighted through a refurbished spy mirror, launched Sunday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a mission to reveal the mysterious forces driving the Universe.
The new mission will extend the vision of NASA’s other famous observatories, providing a field of view 100 times wider than the Hubble Space Telescope and complementing the groundbreaking work of the James Webb Space Telescope. Roman is just the second NASA-led astrophysics mission to launch this century, following the launch of Webb in 2021.
Unlike Webb, which suffered many years of delays before reaching space, Roman arrived at the launch pad nine months before NASA’s commitment to send it skyward by May 2027.
“Roman is exactly the kind of success story we want to see across NASA,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “Delivered ahead of schedule and on budget, this mission reflects more than a decade of dedication from the NASA workforce and our industry partners. Now, Roman will give us a new atlas of the Universe, push the boundaries of discovery, and demonstrate what is possible when America’s space program pairs bold ambition with disciplined execution.”
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket gave Roman a thundering lift to space. SpaceX’s heavy-lifter, powered by 27 kerosene-fueled main engines, took off at 7:25 am EDT (11:25 UTC) Sunday from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Darting into the sky just after dawn, the Falcon Heavy flew downrange over the Atlantic Ocean, released its two reusable side boosters to return to Cape Canaveral, then deployed Roman on a course to take it four times farther from Earth than the Moon.