Reuters Science News Summary

Following is a summary of current science ​news briefs.

NASA launches powerful ​Roman Space Telescope, ‌a spy satellite ​turned to the stars

NASA began a new mission to probe some of the ‌biggest mysteries in astrophysics and cosmology with the launch on Sunday of the U.S. space agency's new flagship astronomical observatory, a repurposed spy satellite ‌that will capture panoramic views of the cosmos. The Nancy Grace ‌Roman Space Telescope, a roughly $4 billion project, was carried aloft from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket through ⁠blue skies ​just after sunrise. ⁠Its mission is planned for five years, though NASA said the telescope may ⁠have enough fuel for five additional years.

Coral bleaching occurring too frequently ​for reefs to recover, scientists say

Coral reefs are experiencing bleaching ⁠events so frequently that they no longer have time to recover before the ⁠next ​one strikes, with global coral cover now well below normal levels and at risk of irreversible decline, scientists said on ⁠Monday. The world's coral reefs sustain a quarter of all marine life, make ⁠coastlines more ⁠resilient and provide food and livelihoods for millions of people, but their survival has been threatened by pollution ‌and ‌increasingly frequent mass bleaching caused ​by soaring ocean heat.