Expanding Our View (2022 STScI presentation)
- Roman FOV compared with familiar Hubble Space Telescope
Image credits:
Wide view: Composite image of the National Science Foundation’s 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory (Credit: T.A. Rector (NRAO/AUI/NSF and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA) and B.A. Wolpa (NOIRLab/NSF/AURA), and an image by amateur astronomer Liam Murphy.
Center image: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Image composition: by L. Hustak (STScI)
- Planets by the thousands—exoplanets & the coronagraph
This near-IR, ground-based image from the Keck Telescope was created using a coronagraph to block out the young star at the center. Even with some stray starlight entering the telescope, researchers were able detect four Jupiter-mass objects orbiting around the young star.
This image was taken from the ground. Roman will be observing from above Earth’s atmosphere, where it will have a much sharper view. In addition, Roman’s “inner working angle” will be smaller than current ground-based telescopes—i.e., we can image closer to the star itself to look for planets that are orbiting more closely to its host star.
Credit: STScI, Jason Wang (Caltech)/Christian Marois (NRC Herzberg)
- Roman Science—Stars by the billions—stellar lifecycle
Credit: STScI
Background image: Nathan Smith, University of Minnesota/NOIRLab/NOAO/AURA/NSF
Mosaic: Hubble Image: NASA, ESA, N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley), and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); CTIO Image: N. Smith (University of Arizona) and NOAO/AURA/NSF
Mystic Mt.: NASA, ESA, and M. Livio and the Hubble 20th Anniversary Team (STScI)
Eta Carina: NASA, ESA, N. Smith (University of Arizona), and J. Morse (BoldlyGo Institute)
Trumpler 14: NASA, ESA, and J. Maíz Apellániz (Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia, Spain); acknowledgment: N. Smith (University of Arizona)
Composition: A. Pagan (STScI)
- Roman Science—Galaxies by the millions—nearby galaxies
The slide image features galaxy UGC 2885 (nicknamed Rubin's Galaxy after astronomer Vera Rubin). Hubble's view is inset, and the Roman field of view is shown with the grid of squares. Roman will capture the entire halo of galaxies like Rubin in a single pointing; the size of the galaxy’s halo is estimated and shown here as the purple circle.
Credit: STScI,
Hubble image: NASA, ESA, and B. Holwerda (University of Louisville)
Background image: Digitized Sky Survey
Image Composition: J. DePasquale (STScI)
- Roman Science—Galaxies by the millions—diversity
Credit: STScI
Background Image: Digitized Sky Survey
Galaxy Images: NASA, ESA, M. Sun (University of Alabama), W. Cramer and J. Kenney (Yale University), J. Mack (STScI), and J. Madrid (Australian Telescope National Facility) and Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA).
Image Composition: A. Pagan (STScI)
- Roman Science—Fundamental physics—structure of the universe
Simulated Roman star-forming galaxy distribution data, displaying ~215,000 galaxies of a much larger 5-million galaxy simulated galaxy catalog.
Credit: STScI
Data provided by Z. Zhai and Y. Wang, Caltech/IPAC, and A. Benson, Carnegie Observatories
Data Visualization: J. DePasquale and D. Player, STScI.
- Roman’s efficiency—more of the sky in less time
This simulated image illustrates the wide range of science enabled by Roman's extremely wide field of view and exquisite resolution. The yellow squares—which all contain background imagery simulated using data from Hubble’s Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Survey (CANDELS) program—outline the area Roman can capture in a single observation. A blue square shows the field of view of Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 for comparison.
Credit: Benjamin Williams, David Weinberg, Anil Seth, Eric Bell, Dave Sand, Dominic Benford, and the WINGS Science Investigation Team
Image Composition: Z. Levy (STScI)
- Conclusion summary slide
Credit: STScI
Wide view: Composite image of NSF’s 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory (Credit: T.A. Rector (NRAO/AUI/NSF and NOIRLab/NSF/AURA) and B.A. Wolpa (NOIRLab/NSF/AURA)
and an image by amateur astronomer Liam Murphy.
Center image: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Image composition: by L. Hustak (STScI)
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
STScI. However, individual items should be credited as indicated above.
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Producer
- Brandon Lawton (STScI)
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Support
- Scott Wiessinger (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Missions
This visualization is related to the following missions:Series
This visualization can be found in the following series:Related pages
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ID: 13672 Produced Video
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Field-of-View Zooms
Read moreThis video of the Eagle Nebula showcases the superb resolution and wide field of view of NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. It begins with a Hubble image of the famous Pillars of Creation superimposed on a ground-based image. The view then zooms out to show the full field of view of Roman’s Wide Field Instrument. Roman’s images will have the resolution of Hubble while covering an area about 100 times larger in a single pointing.Credit: L. Hustak (STScI) || This video of the Eagle Nebula showcases the superb resolution and wide field of view of NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. It begins with a Hubble image of the famous Pillars of Creation superimposed on a ground-based image. The view then zooms out to show the full field of view of Roman’s Wide Field Instrument. Roman’s images will have the resolution of Hubble while covering an area about 100 times larger in a single pointing. No Labels.Credit: L. Hustak (STScI) ||
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ID: 13621 Produced Video
Nancy Grace Roman Spacecraft Beauty Pass Animations and Stills
Read more"Beauty pass" animation of the Roman Space Telescope spacecraft || Animation video and stills based off the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) design of the Roman Space Telescope spacecraft. || "Beauty pass" animation of the Roman Space Telescope spacecraft || Still frame of spacecraft animation || Still frame of spacecraft animation || Still frame of spacecraft animation || Still frame of spacecraft animation || Still frame of spacecraft animation || Stylized still frame of spacecraft animation ||
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ID: 13295 Produced Video
Take a Spin With NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
Read moreLearn more about the Roman Space Telescope spacecraft with this short tour of the main systems.Music: “Phenomenon" from Above and Below Written and produced by Lars LeonhardCredit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Scheduled to launch no later than May 2027, NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope mission will help uncover some of the biggest mysteries in the cosmos. The state-of-the-art telescope on the Roman spacecraft will offer the largest picture of the universe we’ve ever seen with the same depth and precision as the Hubble Space Telescope provides. Roman is a high-precision survey mission that will advance our understanding of fundamental physics. The mission will primarily detect infrared light, which is invisible to human eyes. Earth’s atmosphere absorbs infrared light, which presents challenges for observatories on the ground. Roman has the advantage of flying in space, above the atmosphere. Roman will collect and focus light using a primary mirror that is 7.9 feet (2.4 meters) in diameter. While it’s the same size as the Hubble Space Telescope’s main mirror, it is only one-fourth the weight, showcasing an impressive improvement in telescope technology. The mirror gathers light and sends it on to a pair of science instruments. The spacecraft’s giant camera, the Wide Field Instrument (WFI), will enable astronomers to map the presence of mysterious dark matter, which is known only through its gravitational effects on normal matter. The WFI will also help scientists investigate the equally mysterious "dark energy," which is accelerating the universe's expansion. Whatever its nature, dark energy may hold the key to understanding the fate of the cosmos. Astronomers will also use the WFI to survey our own galaxy in search of exoplanets – worlds beyond our solar system – using the telescope’s ability to sense both smaller and more distant planets than any survey before. This will help determine whether our solar system is common, unusual, or nearly unique in the galaxy. With Hubble-like resolution but a field of view 100 times greater, Roman will combine excellent image quality with the power to conduct large surveys that would take Hubble hundreds of years to complete. Roman’s Coronagraph Instrument will demonstrate technology to directly image exoplanets by blocking out the light of their host stars. To date, astronomers have directly imaged only a small fraction of exoplanets, so Roman’s advanced techniques will expand our inventory and enable us to learn more about them. Results from the Coronagraph Instrument will provide the first opportunity to observe and characterize exoplanets similar to those in our solar system, located between three and 10 times Earth’s distance from the Sun, or from about midway to Jupiter to about the distance of Saturn in our solar system. Studying the physical properties of exoplanets that are more similar to Earth will take us a step closer to discovering habitable planets. ||
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