Teams have finished preparing NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope for launch. On Aug. 21, the team encapsulated the observatory inside the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket’s fairing in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The 43-foot-tall fairing encloses the spacecraft and is mounted atop the Falcon Heavy rocket. On the ground, the fairing and its ground support equipment maintain a safe, controlled environment for Roman and allow the team to transport it out of the facility.

During ascent, the fairing protects Roman from acoustic vibrations, aerodynamic pressure, and heating as the rocket travels through Earth’s atmosphere. A few minutes into the flight, once conditions are safe, the fairing separates, allowing Roman to continue its journey toward its destination at Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 2 (L2). Meanwhile, the two fairing halves will return to Earth and be recovered by SpaceX.

Teams soon will transport Roman to SpaceX’s hangar at Launch Pad 39A, where the encapsulated payload will be mated to Falcon Heavy before rollout to the pad at Launch Complex 39A. NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than 7:26 a.m. EDT Sunday, Aug. 30, for Roman’s launch.

Researchers are eager to study thousands of exoplanets Roman will discover, hoping to understand how closely some may resemble planets in our solar system. They also will use Roman to study the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy, probing the forces driving the universe’s accelerated expansion over time.

Source: NASA