Roman Space Telescope
Liftoff
2027
Future Explorer
Mission Info
The Roman Space Telescope is a NASA observatory designed to unravel the secrets of dark energy and dark matter, search for and image exoplanets, and explore many topics in infrared astrophysics. It will do wide-field surveys of billions of galaxies and measure dark matter around them, search for new dwarf planets, comets, and asteroids in our solar system.
Key Facts
Launch Vehicle
TBD
Launch Site
Cape Canaveral
Provide the largest-scale high-resolution images of the universe that astronomers have ever had
Uncover thousands of exoplanets beyond our solar system, including types of planets never surveyed before
Mission News
NASAField of view much larger than Hubble's
The Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), targeted for launch in 2025–2026, will have a field of view 100 times larger than Hubble's with comparable sensitivity and resolution. WFIRST's Wide Field Instrument (WFI) will provide survey-sized imaging and slitless spectroscopy data sets with space-based resolution, achieving survey speeds hundreds to a thousand times faster than possible with Hubble. WFIRST surveys will enable in-depth investigations in many areas of astrophysics where existing facilities have thus far provided only tantalizing glimpses. WFIRST also includes a technology demonstration Coronagraphic Instrument that will provide orders-of-magnitude improvement in contrast over existing coronagraphs, and push forward our ability to directly image and characterize exoplanets.
