NASA’s Roman Space Telescope is ready to hunt thousands of alien worlds
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope is now enclosed inside its Falcon Heavy fairing and nearly ready for launch.
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope is now enclosed inside its Falcon Heavy fairing and nearly ready for launch.
The short version
- Its mission could uncover thousands of exoplanets while helping scientists investigate dark matter, dark energy, and the accelerating expansion of the universe.
- NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is now one major step closer to liftoff.
- 21, teams enclosed the observatory inside the protective fairing of its SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
What happened
The fairing is the large shell that surrounds a spacecraft at the top of a rocket. Standing 43 feet tall, it protects Roman while the observatory is on the ground and during the most violent early stages of launch.
Why it matters
Together with specialized ground support equipment, the fairing also keeps the telescope in a controlled environment as teams move it between facilities.
Summary by Nerd News Network. Read the full article at ScienceDaily — Top Science via the links above and below.