00:00Astronomy is about to change forever.
00:03NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is about to launch to space to investigate
00:07some of the biggest mysteries in science, like dark energy and exoplanets, or worlds
00:13beyond our solar system.
00:14So what is this telescope?
00:16Why is it so special?
00:18This massive observatory will live in space and study the cosmos using two main instruments,
00:23the Wide Field Instrument, or WFI, and the Coronagraph Instrument.
00:27Now, WFI is essentially a super powered infrared camera that scientists will be able to use
00:33to look all the way to the edge of the observable universe.
00:36So if there's a far off galaxy or solar system that scientists think is important, Roman will
00:40be able to see it.
00:41With WFI, Roman will be able to take images up to 200 times larger than Hubble and 50 times
00:48larger than the James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST, and it's faster too.
00:52In Roman's first five years, it will image over 50 times as much of the sky as Hubble
00:59did in its first 30 years, making Roman about 1,000 times faster.
01:04Now, the telescope's other instrument, the Coronagraph Instrument, will be looking at exoplanets.
01:09It works by blocking out the glare of far off stars.
01:12So by blocking their light, Roman will be able to see planets orbiting those stars.
01:17Right now, scientists looking to study exoplanets have to rely on indirect observations, like
01:23watching the light of a star dim as planets pass in front.
01:27But this instrument would allow us to directly look at far away planets, investigating things
01:33like the type of planets out there and what's in their atmospheres.
01:37This could be a massive step forward toward finding other planets like Earth.
01:41Now, the Coronagraph is a technology demonstration.
01:44That means that Roman's testing to see how this cutting edge tech works, which will also
01:49lay the groundwork for future observatories to see even more of these alien worlds.
01:54Now, these are just some of Roman's major specs, but what scientists do with these tools
01:59is what's really going to be exciting.
02:01With Roman's capabilities, scientists hope to be able to find answers to what's dark energy,
02:06the mysterious something causing the universe to expand at an accelerating rate, or what's
02:11dark matter, the invisible glue holding the universe together.
02:14Or perhaps Roman will light the way for scientists to find other Earth-like worlds.
02:19One thing's for sure, it's going to be amazing.
02:23And while it is clear that Roman's a powerhouse, this doesn't mean that it's replacing Hubble
02:28or JWST.
02:29The three will complement one another's unique capabilities, together delivering the best
02:35space data we've ever seen.
02:37So, let's go to this webinar basically.
02:37So, let us see if that's what we're going to be doing with the blue and the blue.
