SpaceX launched NASA's Roman Space Telescope from Launch Complex 39A at Cape Canaveral on Saturday morning. The mission marks the first spaceflight from Brevard County this year and the second for the telescope. The rocket lifted off at 10:27 a.m. with a live broadcast from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. Engineers confirmed the telescope separated from the Falcon 9 rocket 13 minutes after liftoff. The telescope will spend the next two years traveling to its orbit 1 million miles from Earth. The Roman Space Telescope is named after astronomer Nancy Grace Roman and will study dark energy, exoplanets and infrared light. It has a 2.4-meter mirror similar in size to Hubble's. The mission is part of NASA's Astrophysics Division. Local officials celebrated the launch at the Kennedy Space Center visitors complex. Brevard County Commissioner Kevin Rader said the launch reinforces the area's role in space exploration. The telescope is expected to operate until the mid-2030s. SpaceX's Falcon 9 first stage landed at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station after liftoff. The mission follows SpaceX's launch of the James Webb Telescope in 2021. The Roman Space Telescope will begin scientific operations in 2027.