About this Article

Compiled by Claire Blome (cblome[at]stsci.edu)

Published September 18, 2026

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, named a top space-based priority in the National Academies’ 2010 report, launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday, August 30 on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.

In just 16 years — an unprecedented pace — the worldwide astronomical community has transformed an endorsed concept into a fully assembled space telescope that is now on its way to Lagrange point 2 (L2). Roman's commissioning period has already begun. In less than three months, the telescope will settle into its orbit at L2.

As that hard work begins, several STScI staff members shared some of the exhilaration and excitement they felt during Roman’s launch and what they are looking forward to:

Christine Pulliam, Branch Manager of the STScI News Division

“I’ve never attended a space launch in person before. It felt a lot like my first total solar eclipse: full of anticipation and excitement. I was at the Gateway Rooftop location at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor’s Center with about 150 people. Everybody crowded near the east side of the building, where we had a view of the launch pad. Several of my STScI colleagues were there, so it was great to experience it with friends.

“As the countdown progressed, I got more and more excited — time seemed to flow faster and faster. Everyone counted down from 10 to 0, cheering when the rocket lifted off.

“Up until the last second, I thought there would be a scrub. When I saw the flame and the rocket rising into the sky, it was like liquid fire, as bright as the Sun. I was surprised at how slowly the rocket seemed to rise. Then the rumble of the engines washed over us. It was visceral. We flinched when we heard the sonic booms from the returning boosters.

“Thousands of people worked to make Roman a reality. Seeing it launch was the culmination of all those efforts. Now I’ve shifted from anticipating the launch to anticipating the first images and all the science to come.

“STScI’s Office of Public Outreach will be hard at work processing data for Roman’s first public images, so I’m looking forward to playing a key role in that future unveiling, like we did with Webb.

“Longer term, I want to see what new understandings Roman will provide. The universe is full of unanswered questions!”

Mark Kyprianou, Data Management Subsystem Project Engineer at STScI

“I have witnessed several shuttle launches, but this was my first SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch. I attended with a large group of family and friends at Kennedy Athletic, Recreation, and Social (KARS) park. When I sent out the email asking if who was interested, I was amazed at how quickly and with such enthusiasm many said, ‘Yes!, count us in!’

“The launch was awe inspiring, thrilling — and left me speechless. As I watched, I felt pride for our accomplishment, to be a small part of such a large and diverse team with a variety of skills, all working toward a common goal: Roman’s launch and operations.

“I was thankful to share this event with so many family and friends, especially my three grandchildren, Ella, Desmond, and Leon. I hope this memory will be with them for the rest of their lives and inspires more of them to pursue careers in STEM. My nephew, also in the group, was inspired by my work with Hubble to become an engineer.

“Now is when the work for Roman’s Data Management Subsystem (DMS) team really begins. Before launch, we worked with simulated data. Getting real data is always a bit scary, since these complex missions seem to always throw us curve balls. This feeling is balanced with cautious optimism, since we have such a great team and our staff are always capable of adapting quickly. I have confidence that we’ll perform well during commissioning and operations.”

Marc Postman, Head of STScI’s Science Mission Office 

“I felt a mixture of relief, joy, and pure excitement as I watched the Falcon Heavy lift off and head spaceward. Roman’s launch marked a major milestone: the end of all the mission formulation and construction. It was the very first launch I witnessed in person and, like a total solar eclipse, it is something that you truly have to experience in person to adequately appreciate.

“We arrived at Banana Creek at about 4:30 a.m. The excitement in the crowd was clear. People were catching up with both current and past acquaintances, friends, and colleagues. A highlight was watching Hubble pass overhead at 5:37 a.m. At that moment, two great observatories were within a few hundred miles of one another.

“The sound of the engines washed over us about 15 or 20 seconds after liftoff — the initial visual of the rocket rising up happens in silence. The most remarkable parts for me were the brightness of the exhaust flames during ascent and the arrival of the sonic booms just after the side-boosters landed.

“Roman launch represents the beginning of a tremendous era of scientific discovery. Roman’s Hubble-like resolution and sensitivity coupled with its impressive survey speed will allow us not only to do the things we initially planned to do — like the much improved measurements of the nature of dark energy and surveying completely new regimes of exoplanet demographics — it will also open our reach to very rare and perhaps even unknown phenomena that only a space-based wide field telescope can find. When we discover new, rare objects, we will have superb follow-up capability with Hubble, Webb, and with powerful ground-based telescopes like Rubin, ALMA, Keck, and eventually the ELT.

“Equally exciting is Roman’s demonstration of very high starlight suppression capability with its coronagraphic instrument. I imagine that Roman's coronagraph may make some remarkable discoveries about the atmospheres and surface compositions of exoplanets that no other telescope can currently achieve. This instrument also marks a key technological milestone toward the ultimate search for life on other worlds, paving the way for the upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory.

“Roman’s incredible discoveries are yet to come. We have many years of amazing science ahead.”

Continue Following Along

Whether you actively contribute to Roman, or are excited to explore and analyze the panoramic views from its upcoming surveys, you are also part of this mission. Roman will collaborate with Hubble and Webb, and help inform the Habitable Worlds Observatory concept. Your analyses of these missions’ data empower scientific discovery and our exploration of the universe.

Prepare to use Roman’s data by reading recent articles:

• Roman: Delivering Data That Unlocks Discovery
• Join the Roman Research Nexus: Plug into a Full Suite of Resources and Simulated Data
• Expansive Views of the Milky Way: Roman’s Galactic Plane General Astrophysics Survey
• What Can Roman Do for You? Explore Its Four Fully Defined Surveys
• Roman’s Core Community Surveys Are Now Defined

Follow developments throughout commissioning on NASA's Roman blog.

To keep up to date on Roman news for scientists, visit the Roman Forum or follow NancyRomanSci on Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, and X.

To share your excitement with your family and friends, follow STScI’s social accounts for the public: Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube, BlueSky, and LinkedIn.