Trump hails NASA’s Roman Space Telescope launch as 'The Golden Age of America'

In a latest space update U.S. President Donald Trump praised NASA following the successful launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

Lifting off on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from the Kennedy Space Center, the $4.3 billion observatory is headed to the second Lagrange point (L2) to study dark energy, dark matter, and scan the universe for thousands of new exoplanets.

Trump took to Truth Social to congratulate NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and the team at NASA, declaring the milestone “THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA!” and highlighting the telescope's mission to explore the "dark universe".

In a twist during NASA's post-launch press conference, Trump called in live on speakerphone to congratulate mission leadership and the assembled journalists, telling them, "You are doing a fantastic job, and I'm supplying you all that money."

Surprise phone call from Trump:

In a twist during NASA's post-launch press conference, Trump called in live on speakerphone to congratulate mission leadership and the assembled journalists, telling them, "You are doing a fantastic job, and I'm supplying you all that money."

The praise marked a sharp pivot for the administration. Just a year prior, budget proposals from the White House had targeted the Roman Space Telescope for cuts or potential cancellation, leading engineers to fast-track its launch timeline.

Ultimately, the observatory made it to the pad ahead of schedule and under budget.