NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is set to explore the universe's early phase, known as the cosmic dawn, which occurred approximately a billion years after the Big Bang.

This cosmic dawn represents a significant transition from a foggy universe to a star-filled expanse, providing crucial insights into fundamental changes in the nature of the universe.

Prior to this period, the early universe was a hot sea of particles and radiation that eventually cooled to form neutral atoms, leading to an era known as the cosmic dark ages, lasting from 380,000 to 200 million years after the Big Bang.

During the cosmic dawn, the first stars were massive and high-energy, contributing to galaxy formation and potentially collapsing into black holes, which may have played a role in clearing the hydrogen fog.

The lifting of this primordial fog is believed to have been caused by the energetic light emitted from early galaxies and radiation from black holes.

Takahiro Morishita from Caltech notes that the Roman telescope's wide views will help identify regions where this fog was cleared, aiding in the study of early galaxy evolution.

The mission is led by a team of scientists and industrial partners, focusing on this transformative period in the universe's history.

The Roman Space Telescope will work in conjunction with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to provide a comprehensive understanding of the early universe.

Astrophysicist Michelle Thaller from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center emphasizes the potential of the Roman telescope to uncover what transpired during this critical period.

The combined observations from both telescopes aim to reveal how early galaxies and quasars influenced the clearing of the primordial fog and shaped the universe we see today.