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| WFIRST (Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope |
| Names | WFIRST |
| Operator | NASA |
| Mission type | Space telescope |
| Launch mass | 6300 kg (approx.) |
| Launch date | Planned 2027 (slip possible) |
| Orbit | Sun–Earth L2 halo orbit |
| Instruments | Wide Field Instrument, Coronagraph Instrument |
WFIRST (Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope) The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is a NASA-funded space observatory designed for wide-field infrared surveys and high-contrast coronagraphy. The mission builds on heritage from Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, James Webb Space Telescope, Gaia (spacecraft) and aims to address questions central to Dark Energy Survey, Sloan Digital Sky Survey, Supernova Cosmology Project and Sloan Digital Sky Survey science programs. It is managed by NASA with contributions from partners such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Space Telescope Science Institute, California Institute of Technology, and international collaborators including the European Space Agency and institutions in Canada.
The observatory features a 2.4-meter primary mirror similar in scale to Hubble Space Telescope and a wide-field instrument capable of capturing surveys comparable to the scope of Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and Pan-STARRS while retaining angular resolution approaching Hubble Space Telescope performance. Designed to operate at the Sun–Earth L2 halo orbit like James Webb Space Telescope and Gaia (spacecraft), the telescope combines survey speed, sensitivity, and high-contrast imaging to pursue science themes pioneered by Supernova Cosmology Project, High-z Supernova Search Team, and projects led at institutions such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Princeton University.
The concept originated in the 2000s within advisory groups including the Astrophysics Decadal Survey panels and recommendations from the National Research Council (United States). Development followed programmatic changes influenced by Congress of the United States, reviews by the Government Accountability Office, and budget guidance from Office of Management and Budget (United States). The telescope design evolved from earlier mission concepts such as the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument planning and precursor studies at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and academic teams at University of California, Berkeley, University of Chicago, and University of Washington. The naming honored Nancy Grace Roman, a NASA astronomer influential at NASA Headquarters and in the establishment of Hubble Space Telescope programs.
The spacecraft bus and payload leveraged heritage from missions developed at Jet Propulsion Laboratory and manufactured in collaboration with industrial partners including Ball Aerospace and Northrop Grumman. The Wide Field Instrument provides near-infrared imaging and slitless spectroscopy across a field of view hundreds of times larger than Hubble Space Telescope's, enabling survey programs akin to Sloan Digital Sky Survey and imaging campaigns used by COSMOS (astronomy) teams at University of Hawaii. The Coronagraph Instrument demonstrates starlight suppression technologies developed by teams at California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and University of Colorado Boulder to test techniques relevant to future missions favored in reports by the Astrophysics Advisory Committee (NASA). Instrument detectors and subsystems draw on heritage from Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) development at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Primary objectives include precision studies of cosmic acceleration through weak gravitational lensing, baryon acoustic oscillations, and Type Ia supernovae building on analyses from Dark Energy Survey, Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey, and Supernova Cosmology Project. Exoplanet microlensing surveys will extend results from Kepler space telescope and support population studies conducted by groups at Pennsylvania State University, University of California, Santa Cruz, and University of Hawaii. The Coronagraph Instrument will perform technology demonstrations pertinent to future flagship missions studied by panels of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and advocated by institutions such as Carnegie Institution for Science and Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Ancillary science includes Galactic structure mapping complementing Gaia (spacecraft) catalogs and time-domain astrophysics coordinated with Zwicky Transient Facility and Large Synoptic Survey Telescope programs.
The baseline launch architecture calls for a heavy-lift vehicle and transfer to a Sun–Earth L2 halo orbit, operations modeled on mission planning used by James Webb Space Telescope and Gaia (spacecraft)]. Mission operations centers involve Space Telescope Science Institute and flight operations teams at Jet Propulsion Laboratory with ground-segment coordination among Deep Space Network facilities and data processing collaborations at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and international partners including European Space Agency ground stations.
Planned data products include calibrated imaging mosaics, slitless spectroscopy catalogs, time-domain alerts, and high-contrast coronagraphic datasets delivered to archives managed by Space Telescope Science Institute and Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes. Community science proposals will follow models used by Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope, with legacy surveys analogous to Sloan Digital Sky Survey and community-led teams at institutions such as University of Cambridge, University of Toronto, and Australian National University expected to exploit public releases. Citizen science projects inspired by Zooniverse could engage volunteers as was done for Galaxy Zoo.
The program has faced scrutiny over cost growth and schedule slips reviewed in hearings by United States Congress committees and assessments by the Government Accountability Office. Design descopes, international partnership negotiations with European Space Agency and Canadian Space Agency, and debates over instrument configuration mirrored earlier controversies surrounding James Webb Space Telescope and influenced funding guidance from Office of Management and Budget (United States). Advocacy from scientific communities represented by American Astronomical Society, American Physical Society, and panels of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has shaped mission priorities and trade-offs.