The new Nancy Grace Roman telescope is similarly expected to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe, including through investigating dark energy. It has a five-year primary lifespan with a goal to operate for 10 years.
Nasa says the telescope’s “crisp, sweeping surveys will help scientists investigate dark energy and dark matter, discover and characterise exoplanets, map billions of galaxies, study black holes, and explore objects from our own solar system to the edge of the observable Universe.”
The origins of dark matter and dark energy remain unknown, but they are believed to make up about 95% of the Universe.
Dark matter, which is invisible, acts as a kind of gravitational glue, while dark energy is believed to be a repulsive force driving the Universe’s expansion.
The US space agency successfully launched the telescope on Sunday morning from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
About 30 minutes after launch, Roman separated from its SpaceX rocket and is now heading towards its orbiting point around a million miles away.
