Project News

NASA Telescope Named For ‘Mother of Hubble’ Nancy Grace Roman

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • May 20th, 2020

NASA is naming its next-generation space telescope currently under development, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), in honor of Nancy Grace Roman, NASA’s first chief astronomer, who paved the way for space telescopes focused on the broader universe.

A Tale of Two Telescopes: WFIRST and Hubble

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • April 20th, 2020

NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), planned for launch in the mid-2020s, will create enormous cosmic panoramas. Using them, astronomers will explore everything from our solar system to the edge of the observable universe, including planets throughout our galaxy and the nature of...

Warped Space-time to Help WFIRST Find Exoplanets

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • March 30th, 2020

To date, astronomers have found most planets when they pass in front of their host star in events called transits, which temporarily dim the star's light. WFIRST data can spot transits too, but the mission will primarily watch for microlensing.

NASA Approves Development of Universe-Studying, Planet-Finding Mission

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • March 2nd, 2020

NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) project has passed a critical programmatic and technical milestone, giving the mission the official green light to begin hardware development and testing.

Probing the Hubble Constant with NASA's WFIRST

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • January 10th, 2020

Discrepancies in the Hubble constant, which describes how fast the universe is expanding, have vexed astronomers for years. Values predicted from observations of the early universe simply don’t match up to measurements of the modern universe.

Simulated Image Demonstrates the Power of NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • January 7th, 2020

Imagine a fleet of 100 Hubble Space Telescopes, deployed in a strategic space-invader-shaped array a million miles from Earth, scanning the universe at warp speed.

Are planets like those in 'Star Wars: Rogue One' really out there? NASA plans to find out

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • December 15th, 2016

In the "Star Wars" universe, ice, ocean and desert planets burst from the darkness as your ship drops out of light speed. But these worlds might be more than just science fiction.

NASA's New Great Observatory Takes Shape with the Support of the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • March 17th, 2016

Teams of scientists and engineers are now honing the concept for WFIRST as a fast, deep, mapping engine at near-infrared wavelengths for addressing fundamental questions about dark energy, exoplanets and numerous other topics in astrophysics.

NASA Introduces New, Wider Set of Eyes on the Universe

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • Project News • February 18th, 2016

After years of preparatory studies, NASA is formally starting an astrophysics mission designed to help unlock the secrets of the universe -- the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST).

NASA Telescope Named For ‘Mother of Hubble’ Nancy Grace Roman

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • May 20th, 2020

NASA is naming its next-generation space telescope currently under development, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), in honor of Nancy Grace Roman, NASA’s first...

A Tale of Two Telescopes: WFIRST and Hubble

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • April 20th, 2020

NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), planned for launch in the mid-2020s, will create enormous cosmic panoramas. Using them, astronomers will explore everything...

Warped Space-time to Help WFIRST Find Exoplanets

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • March 30th, 2020

To date, astronomers have found most planets when they pass in front of their host star in events called transits, which temporarily dim the star's light. WFIRST data can spot...

NASA Approves Development of Universe-Studying, Planet-Finding Mission

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • March 2nd, 2020

NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) project has passed a critical programmatic and technical milestone, giving the mission the official green light to begin...

Probing the Hubble Constant with NASA's WFIRST

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • January 10th, 2020

Discrepancies in the Hubble constant, which describes how fast the universe is expanding, have vexed astronomers for years. Values predicted from observations of the early...

Simulated Image Demonstrates the Power of NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • January 7th, 2020

Imagine a fleet of 100 Hubble Space Telescopes, deployed in a strategic space-invader-shaped array a million miles from Earth, scanning the universe at warp speed.

Are planets like those in 'Star Wars: Rogue One' really out there? NASA plans to find out

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • December 15th, 2016

In the "Star Wars" universe, ice, ocean and desert planets burst from the darkness as your ship drops out of light speed. But these worlds might be more than just science fiction.

NASA's New Great Observatory Takes Shape with the Support of the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • March 17th, 2016

Teams of scientists and engineers are now honing the concept for WFIRST as a fast, deep, mapping engine at near-infrared wavelengths for addressing fundamental questions about...

NASA Introduces New, Wider Set of Eyes on the Universe

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope • February 18th, 2016

After years of preparatory studies, NASA is formally starting an astrophysics mission designed to help unlock the secrets of the universe -- the Wide Field Infrared Survey...