NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope set to explore the universe
NASA is set to launch the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, a $4.3 billion mission designed to explore dark energy, dark matter, and exoplanets. The telescope, repurposed from a former spy satellite, will be supported by Australian tracking infrastructure.
Why it matters
This mission represents a major advancement in deep space exploration and our understanding of the fundamental laws of physics.
The $US4.3 billion telescope is set to launch on August 30. ( Supplied: NASA/Kim Shiflett )
Link copied Share Share article This weekend, NASA plans to launch its next flagship mission into deep space.
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which started life as a spy satellite, will help find alien planets, map the universe, and possibly contribute to the collapse of a major theory in modern physics.
Ami Choi, a research astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, says the telescope will help make discoveries in dark energy and dark matter.
But, as previous space telescopes have done, it may find things that astronomers can't even imagine yet.
"The unknown unknowns that we'll probably discover — I think that's also very exciting," Dr Choi says.
If the launch goes to plan, the telescope will release its first images and data in about three months.
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