"With the panels in place, the observatory is about 90% complete," said Jack Marshall, who leads the Solar Array Sun Shield effort at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. "We just need to connect two major components before we begin a full series of tests." Marshall confirmed that the team is targeting a launch as early as fall 2026, well ahead of the no-later-than May 2027 deadline.
The system includes two fixed central panels and four others that will deploy in orbit to form a complete array. These will remain Sun-facing throughout the mission, continuously supplying power to the observatory's electronics and shielding sensitive instruments from solar heat. This is particularly vital for the Roman Telescope's infrared capabilities, as excess warmth would overwhelm its detectors.
"Now that the panels have been installed, the outer portion of the Roman observatory is complete," said mechanical engineer Aaron Vigil at Goddard. In the coming months, teams will verify panel deployment and test the observatory's deployable aperture cover, or visor.
Simultaneously, engineers are testing the spacecraft's core electronics and subjecting the system to thermal vacuum conditions to ensure it performs under the extreme temperatures of space.
The project remains on schedule to integrate Roman's inner and outer modules by November, with a fully assembled observatory ready for final pre-launch evaluations by year's end.
Related Links
Roman Space Telescope
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