{
  "id": 3763060,
  "title": "Trump tried to scrap NASA's Roman Space Telescope last year. Now it's ready to launch",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/trump-tried-to-scrap-nasas-roman-space-telescope-last-year-now-its",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-27T15:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Space.com",
    "slug": "space-com",
    "url": "https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/trump-tried-to-scrap-nasas-roman-space-telescope-last-year-now-its-ready-to-launch"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "NASA's Roman Space Telescope, set to launch on August 30, has overcome a potential cancellation threat last year. The spacecraft, a next-generation research satellite, was nearing completion when President Trump's leaked budget proposal for fiscal year 2026 sparked fears of its demise. However, the administration's revised budget request allocated $156.6 million to Roman's continued development, though it was less than half of what the project received the previous year. Despite the reduced funding, the mission's team remained focused, pushing forward with accelerated testing and working extended hours. The telescope, which will be positioned at the sun-Earth Lagrange Point 2, aims to study dark matter and dark energy, exoplanet discoveries, and capture wide-field images of the universe.",
  "summary": "NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is about to launch, but the observatory almost had a very different fate. President Trump's leaked budget proposal last year marked it for cancellation.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 10,
    "also_reported_by": [
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        "published": "2026-08-26T19:38:51.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Hill",
        "title": "NASA administrator suggests putting data centers in space",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/nasa-administrator-suggests-putting-data-centers-in-space",
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        "outlet": "Times of India",
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        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/in-1962-nasa-blew-up-a-water-tank-65-miles-above-earth-to-study-the",
        "published": "2026-08-27T05:22:19.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Nautilus",
        "title": "NASA Has Started the Count Down to the Launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/nasa-has-started-the-count-down-to-the-launch-of-the-nancy-grace",
        "published": "2026-08-27T12:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Conversation",
        "title": "NASA is gearing up to launch its next flagship space telescope – combining spy technology with sophisticated infrared detectors",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/nasa-is-gearing-up-to-launch-its-next-flagship-space-telescope",
        "published": "2026-08-27T12:05:22.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Space.com",
        "title": "On this day in space! Aug. 27, 1962: NASA launches Mariner 2 to Venus for ambitious flyby",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/on-this-day-in-space-aug-27-1962-nasa-launches-mariner-2-to-venus-for",
        "published": "2026-08-27T14:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CBS News",
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        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/nasa-chief-outlines-plans-to-build-moon-base-in-space-race-with-china",
        "published": "2026-08-27T14:25:03.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Scientific American",
        "title": "NASA’s Roman Space Telescope will rewrite how we study the universe",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/nasas-roman-space-telescope-will-rewrite-how-we-study-the-universe",
        "published": "2026-08-27T15:15:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Silicon Republic",
        "title": "Spy to space: The science behind NASA’s Roman Space Telescope",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/spy-to-space-the-science-behind-nasas-roman-space-telescope",
        "published": "2026-08-27T15:55:22.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}