NASA Integrates Coronagraph Instrument for Roman Space Telescope

JAKARTA – NASA revealed that the Roman Coronagraph instrument has been successfully integrated into the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope component. The component is named the Instrument Carrier.

As the name implies, this component is an infrastructure designed to accommodate several instruments during the mission. After its development is complete, this infrastructure will be installed on the Roman Telescope body before launch.

The integration of the Roman Coronagraph instrument was carried out at the Goddard Space Center, one of NASA's facilities. It was not explained when the Roman Coronagraph was integrated. The US space agency only revealed that the installation was carried out in October.

The coronagraph is a very important instrument because this technology is designed to block starlight so that the Roman Telescope's field of view becomes wider. This technology will observe exoplanets using a light-obscuring mirror.

"The Roman Coronagraph is ready to act as a technological stepping stone, enabling future technology on missions such as NASA's proposed Habitable World Observatory, which will be the first telescope specifically designed to search for signs of life," said NASA.

The 1.7-meter coronagraph is attached to the Instrument Carrier using the Horizontal Integration Tool. During the integration process, technicians have ensured that the cover layer has been installed to isolate the coronagraph.

"The coronagraph is designed to operate at room temperature, so insulation is critical to keeping the instrument at the right temperature in the cold vacuum. This insulation will also provide an additional barrier to block unwanted light," NASA explained.

Now, technicians will perform various checks and tests to ensure that all components are properly connected. After that, they will continue the next stage, namely the integration of the Wide Field Instrument and the installation of the Instrument Carrier to the Roman Telescope.