A member of the L3 Harris team draws cloth from the primary mirror of the Roman Space Telescope. Credit: L3 Harris Technologies
The primary mirror of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which will collect and focus light from near and far cosmic objects, has been completed. Using this mirror, Roman Hubble will achieve stunning space vistas with a field of view 100 times greater than images.
“It’s very exciting to have this achievement,” said Scott Smith, Roman Telescope manager. ” NASAGoddard’s Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “Success depends on each individual team, and this is especially true in our current challenging environment. Each person plays a role in collecting that first image and answering inspiring questions. ”
The Romans would study the universe through dust and on the vast expanse of space and space using infrared light, which human eyes cannot see. The detail that these observations will reveal is directly related to the size of the telescope’s mirror, as larger surfaces collect more light and measure better features.
The Roman primary mirror is around 9.9 feet (4.4 m). When it is the same size Hubble Space TelescopeThe main mirror, it weighs less than a quarter of the weight. The Roman mirror weighs only 410 pounds (186 kilograms), thanks to major changes to the technol major g.
The primary mirror of the Roman Space Telescope reflects the American flag. Its surface is measured a hundred times more than a typical household mirror. Credit: L3 Harris Technologies
The primary mirror, along with other optics, will send light to Roman’s two science instruments – the Wide Field Instrument and the Coronagraph Instrument. The first is essentially a huge 300-megapixel camera marrow that provides about 100 times the Hubble-like resolution in the field of view. Using this tool, scientists will be able to map the formation and distribution of invisible dark matter, study the patterns of planets around other stars, and discover how the universe evolved in its current state.
The coronograph technology demonstrates demonstration that blocks the glare of stars and allows astronomers to image images of planets directly in orbit around them. If the coronograph technology works as expected, it will see planets that are almost a billion times obscure from their host stars and enable detailed study of other giant planets around the Sun.
The Romans will observe from a favorable position in the opposite direction to the Sun, about 930,000 miles (1.5 million km) away from the Earth. The Roman’s barrel-like shape will help block unwanted light from the sun, earth and moon, and help keep the spacecraft’s remote location cool, ensuring it can detect faint infrared signals.
Crane tors reduce the parameters support equipment to move the primary mirror of the Roman Space Telescope. With the help of this mirror, Roman will give a new perspective on the universe, scientists will help scientists solve cosmic mysteries related to dark matter, dark energy rays and planets around other stars. Credit: L3 Harris Technologies
Because it will experience a temperature range between production and testing on Earth and operation in space, the primary mirror is made of a specialty ultrallo-expansion glass. Most of the material expands and shrinks when the temperature changes, but if the primary mirror changes shape it will distort the images with the telescope. The Roman mirror and its support structure are designed to reduce flexing, which will maintain the quality of its observations.
The development of the mirror is far beyond what would have been at this stage as the mission offers the benefit of a mirror that was transferred from the National Rick Onna Nance Office Fees to NASA. The team modified the shape and surface of the mirror for Roman science purposes.
A layer of silver in a newly revived mirror is less than 400 nanometers thick – 200 times thinner than human hair. The silver coating was especially chosen for Roman because of how well it reflects near infrared light. In contrast, Hubble’s mirrors are coated with layers of aluminum and magnesium fluoride to optimize visible and ultraviolet light reflectivity. Likewise, this James Webb Web Space TelescopeIts mirrors have a gold coating corresponding to its long wavelength infrared observations.
Roman mirrors are so finely polished that the average bump on its surface is only 1.5 nanometers tall – twice as easy as needed for a mission. If the mirror should be the size of the earth, these troubles would be in just a quarter of an inch of height.
Bonnie Patterson, program manager at L3 Harris Technologies in Rochester, New York, said the mirror on the optical prescription for the Roman Space Telescope was definitely over. “Since it is much softer than necessary, it will provide even more scientific benefits than originally planned.”
Next, a mirror will be arranged on L3 Harris for additional testing. It has already been extensively tested on both cold and ambient temperatures. The new tests will be done with a mirror attached to its support structure.
“Roman’s primary mirror is complete, though our work isn’t complete,” Smith said. “We are excited to embark on this mission and look forward to it, and look forward to witnessing the wonders it has revealed.”
Nancy Grace Roman Space is managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and a science team of scientists from Celtic / IPAC, the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, and research institutes from the United States.
