TWO PRE-LAUNCH BFGS FOR LAUNCH OF ROMAN SPACE TELESCOPE, Aug 29, 2026, KSC, 9:00 am and 10:30 am ET

In preparation for the launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on August 30, 2026, NASA will hold two pre-launch briefings at Kennedy Space Center on August 29 at 9:00 am and 10:30 am ET. They will be livestreamed, but NASA had not specified on which of its platforms as of August 24. Check NASA Live for updates.

The 9:00 am Mission Science Briefing features:

• Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director, Astrophysics Division, NASA Headquarters
• Julie McEnery, Roman telescope senior project scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
• Vanessa Bailey, Roman Coronagraph Instrument scientist, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Kristen McQuinn, Roman Science Operations Center lead, Space Telescope Science Institute
• Lee Armus, Roman Science Support Center lead, Caltech/IPAC

The 10:30 am Prelaunch News Conference features:

• Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
• Lucas Paganini, Roman telescope program executive, NASA Headquarters
• Jackie Townsend, Roman telescope project manager, NASA Goddard
• Denton Gibson, launch director, NASA’s Launch Services Program, NASA Kennedy
• Julianna Scheiman, director, NASA Science and Dragon Programs, SpaceX
• Justin McReynolds, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, U.S. Space Force

The next day, NASA launch coverage begins at 6:20 am ET for the launch at 7:26 am ET. A post-launch news conference will follow at 9:30 am ET. See our separate entry for details.