Spacecraft Archive
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
Space Telescopes
Launched in 2026 with a primary mirror the same size as Hubble's paired with a camera roughly a hundred times wider, Roman is designed to survey the universe for dark energy, dark matter, and thousands of new exoplanets far faster than any telescope before it.
OrbitingTruths Archive
Space Telescopes • Commissioning
Overview
Built for the mission
Launched in 2026 with a primary mirror the same size as Hubble's paired with a camera roughly a hundred times wider, Roman is designed to survey the universe for dark energy, dark matter, and thousands of new exoplanets far faster than any telescope before it.
Spacecraft Details
Type
Space Telescope
Manufacturer
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, with Ball Aerospace / L3Harris (instruments)
Launch Date
August 30, 2026
Launch Vehicle
SpaceX Falcon Heavy
Launch Site
Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center
Primary Mirror
2.4 meters (7.9 ft), the same size as Hubble's
Orbit
Sun-Earth L2 (en route, roughly a three-month journey)
Program
Space Telescopes
Status
Commissioning, first images expected in early 2027
Named For
Nancy Grace Roman, NASA's first Chief of Astronomy
Related Program
Space Telescopes
NASA's uncrewed observatories, launched above Earth's atmosphere to see the universe with a clarity no ground-based telescope can match.
Explore Program