INBOX ASTRONOMY
NASA’s Roman Telescope Will Spot Distant Black Holes That Shred Stars
Release date: Tuesday, July 14, 2026 10:00:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time
Roman’s large tally will help illuminate the origins of supermassive black holes.
Supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies can be messy eaters. Sometimes when a wandering star gets too close, it will get shredded before it is consumed. In the process, the region around the black hole brightens and may outshine its entire galaxy. In that way, otherwise hidden black holes become detectable.
Once it launches as early as Aug. 30, 2026, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is expected to observe up to 100 of these star-shredding events every year. That data will lead to a new understanding of how supermassive black holes first formed, and how they grow and evolve.
Find additional resources at www.stsci.edu
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