Matthew Bolcar
@mrbolcar.bsky.social
Optical systems engineer, homebrewer, amateur photographer, ΦΣΠ Brother. Posts about beer and space telescopes (#LUVOIR, #RomanSpaceTelescope, #HabWorlds). Opinions my own.
This year, one of the many things I'm thankful for is that I get to be a member of this amazing team. In addition to completing an incredibly complex thermal vacuum test ahead of schedule, the team didn't flinch at the government shutdown (or other distractions) and just kept on going.
November 28, 2025 at 8:55 PM
This year, one of the many things I'm thankful for is that I get to be a member of this amazing team. In addition to completing an incredibly complex thermal vacuum test ahead of schedule, the team didn't flinch at the government shutdown (or other distractions) and just kept on going.
This announcement is a little delayed due to the shutdown, but back in October we completed our 65-day thermal vacuum test of the Roman spacecraft and Payload. The system worked great, and we're moving on to Observatory integration & test!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
NASA's Roman Observatory Passes Spate of Key Tests - NASA
NASA’s nearly complete Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope has made another set of critical strides toward launch. This fall, the outer portion passed two tests
www.nasa.gov
November 26, 2025 at 11:51 AM
This announcement is a little delayed due to the shutdown, but back in October we completed our 65-day thermal vacuum test of the Roman spacecraft and Payload. The system worked great, and we're moving on to Observatory integration & test!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
Reposted by Matthew Bolcar
It's Friday, and apparently bluesky is ready for this fun revelation:
Dinosaurs lived on the other side the Galaxy.
Dinosaurs lived on the other side the Galaxy.
November 21, 2025 at 5:11 PM
It's Friday, and apparently bluesky is ready for this fun revelation:
Dinosaurs lived on the other side the Galaxy.
Dinosaurs lived on the other side the Galaxy.
Reposted by Matthew Bolcar
I would stop, but I have to put in a good word for NASA and how it selects and funds science. I'm starting to think maybe Avi Loeb doesn't know what he's talking about?
medium.com/@steve.desch...
medium.com/@steve.desch...
Science goals and science teams
After having scored all the goals for the faculty in the first half of our annual soccer game against the graduate students, I decided to…
medium.com
August 22, 2025 at 3:55 PM
I would stop, but I have to put in a good word for NASA and how it selects and funds science. I'm starting to think maybe Avi Loeb doesn't know what he's talking about?
medium.com/@steve.desch...
medium.com/@steve.desch...
Slightly diminish a band: Semimetallica
Slightly diminish a band: Tom Petty and the Friendzoners
Slightly diminish a band: The Only Mostly Dead Kennedys
August 13, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Slightly diminish a band: Semimetallica
Reposted by Matthew Bolcar
what a week for our future✨ #HWO25
🧵coming soon🔭🧪☄️
@mmacgreg.bsky.social @hbhammel.bsky.social @bmacastro.bsky.social @dawngelino.bsky.social
@aussiastronomer.bsky.social @stsci.edu @aura-astronomy.bsky.social @justtheletteru.bsky.social @vividreams.bsky.social @leefeinberg.bsky.social +500 others
🧵coming soon🔭🧪☄️
@mmacgreg.bsky.social @hbhammel.bsky.social @bmacastro.bsky.social @dawngelino.bsky.social
@aussiastronomer.bsky.social @stsci.edu @aura-astronomy.bsky.social @justtheletteru.bsky.social @vividreams.bsky.social @leefeinberg.bsky.social +500 others
August 1, 2025 at 8:27 PM
what a week for our future✨ #HWO25
🧵coming soon🔭🧪☄️
@mmacgreg.bsky.social @hbhammel.bsky.social @bmacastro.bsky.social @dawngelino.bsky.social
@aussiastronomer.bsky.social @stsci.edu @aura-astronomy.bsky.social @justtheletteru.bsky.social @vividreams.bsky.social @leefeinberg.bsky.social +500 others
🧵coming soon🔭🧪☄️
@mmacgreg.bsky.social @hbhammel.bsky.social @bmacastro.bsky.social @dawngelino.bsky.social
@aussiastronomer.bsky.social @stsci.edu @aura-astronomy.bsky.social @justtheletteru.bsky.social @vividreams.bsky.social @leefeinberg.bsky.social +500 others
At the #HWO25 conference this week to discuss the science and technology of the Habitable Worlds Observatory! Happy to answer questions here or in person if you can find me!
July 28, 2025 at 2:08 PM
At the #HWO25 conference this week to discuss the science and technology of the Habitable Worlds Observatory! Happy to answer questions here or in person if you can find me!
Do you want to hear Gimli narrate a video about the search for life in our universe? Of course you do!
The Habitable Worlds Observatory project is still in its infancy, yet paradoxically it's the project I've worked on the longest.
youtu.be/XJwDlLiQpS4?...
The Habitable Worlds Observatory project is still in its infancy, yet paradoxically it's the project I've worked on the longest.
youtu.be/XJwDlLiQpS4?...
NASA’s Habitable Worlds Observatory Will Search for Life
YouTube video by NASA Goddard
youtu.be
July 15, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Do you want to hear Gimli narrate a video about the search for life in our universe? Of course you do!
The Habitable Worlds Observatory project is still in its infancy, yet paradoxically it's the project I've worked on the longest.
youtu.be/XJwDlLiQpS4?...
The Habitable Worlds Observatory project is still in its infancy, yet paradoxically it's the project I've worked on the longest.
youtu.be/XJwDlLiQpS4?...
"Its legacy will not be boots on Mars, merely a lingering societal regret at throwing away so much, so quickly, to achieve so little."
spacenews.com/the-administ...
(reflects my own opinion, on my own time and my own device)
spacenews.com/the-administ...
(reflects my own opinion, on my own time and my own device)
The administration’s anti-consensus Mars plan will fail
The administration’s anti-consensus Mars plan will fail
spacenews.com
June 19, 2025 at 4:40 PM
"Its legacy will not be boots on Mars, merely a lingering societal regret at throwing away so much, so quickly, to achieve so little."
spacenews.com/the-administ...
(reflects my own opinion, on my own time and my own device)
spacenews.com/the-administ...
(reflects my own opinion, on my own time and my own device)
Meanwhile, we're (not so) quietly making progress on the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope! Watch (and hear) us shake the Spacecraft + Integrated Payload Assembly!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
Core Components for NASA’s Roman Space Telescope Pass Major Shake Test - NASA
The core portion of NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope has successfully completed vibration testing, ensuring it will withstand the extreme shaking
www.nasa.gov
June 6, 2025 at 12:32 PM
Meanwhile, we're (not so) quietly making progress on the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope! Watch (and hear) us shake the Spacecraft + Integrated Payload Assembly!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
This is such a cool mission!
science.nasa.gov/blogs/dragon...
science.nasa.gov/blogs/dragon...
NASA’s Dragonfly Passes Critical Design Review - NASA Science
NASA’s Dragonfly, the first rotorcraft designed for science exploration on another planet, has passed its Critical Design Review. The mission to Saturn’s icy moon Titan will investigate prebiotic chem...
science.nasa.gov
April 25, 2025 at 12:49 PM
This is such a cool mission!
science.nasa.gov/blogs/dragon...
science.nasa.gov/blogs/dragon...
*chef's kiss*
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Canada goose fights off bald eagle in rare, symbolism-laden battle on ice
Photographer captures 20-minute clash between birds emblematic of Canada and US amid high trade tensions
www.theguardian.com
March 6, 2025 at 1:21 AM
*chef's kiss*
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Great timelapse of the #RomanSpaceTelescope coming together! Most of this happened in about a month and a half right before the holiday (the exception being the installation of CGI, which happened earlier in the fall).
svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14746/#media...
svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14746/#media...
NASA Scientific Visualization Studio | Roman SCIPA Hyperwall Time-lapse
This 3x3-hyperwall-resolution time-lapse video of Roman shows the major integration steps of the key systems to form SCIPA, or the Spacecraft Integrated Payload Assembly. It includes the spacecraft bu...
svs.gsfc.nasa.gov
February 4, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Great timelapse of the #RomanSpaceTelescope coming together! Most of this happened in about a month and a half right before the holiday (the exception being the installation of CGI, which happened earlier in the fall).
svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14746/#media...
svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14746/#media...
Please support our JPL colleagues impacted by the wildfires!
It's five now. Jason Tumlinson and the HWO Folks have set up this one, which is now at $3K+ in donations and sending out money immediately. More funds for broader community are coming ... www.gofundme.com/f/support-na...
Donate to Support NASA JPL HabWorlds teammates in the Pasadena fires, organized by Jason Tumlinson
We are raising money to assist friends of ours who are displa… Jason Tumlinson needs your support for Support NASA JPL HabWorlds teammates in the Pasadena fires
www.gofundme.com
January 8, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Please support our JPL colleagues impacted by the wildfires!
This was our Christmas present last year: SCIPA! The team did an excellent job completing the mechanical integration of the Integrated Payload Assembly to the Spacecraft bus.
www.nasa.gov/universe/nas...
www.nasa.gov/universe/nas...
NASA Joins Telescope, Instruments to Roman Spacecraft - NASA
Technicians have successfully integrated NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s payload – the telescope, instrument carrier, and two instruments – to the
www.nasa.gov
January 8, 2025 at 3:23 PM
This was our Christmas present last year: SCIPA! The team did an excellent job completing the mechanical integration of the Integrated Payload Assembly to the Spacecraft bus.
www.nasa.gov/universe/nas...
www.nasa.gov/universe/nas...
My books of 2024:
December 31, 2024 at 7:51 PM
My books of 2024:
And now - a complete Integrated Payload Assembly (IPA)! And if all goes well, by the end of next week, we'll have a Spacecraft bus + IPA (what we call SCIPA).
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
NASA Successfully Integrates Roman Mission’s Telescope, Instruments - NASA
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope team has successfully integrated the mission’s telescope and two instruments onto the instrument carrier, marking the
www.nasa.gov
December 12, 2024 at 8:12 PM
And now - a complete Integrated Payload Assembly (IPA)! And if all goes well, by the end of next week, we'll have a Spacecraft bus + IPA (what we call SCIPA).
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
A partial Payload. Just need to install the Wide-Field Instrument next week!
www.facebook.com/share/p/17xa...
www.facebook.com/share/p/17xa...
Redirecting...
www.facebook.com
December 5, 2024 at 1:50 PM
A partial Payload. Just need to install the Wide-Field Instrument next week!
www.facebook.com/share/p/17xa...
www.facebook.com/share/p/17xa...
We have a telescope!! It's been a very exciting week here at the Optical Telescope Assembly arrived at GSFC and was unpacked. We now have *all* the pieces of the Observatory here and can start putting them all together and testing the full system!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
Telescope for NASA’s Roman Mission Complete, Delivered to Goddard - NASA
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is one giant step closer to unlocking the mysteries of the universe. The mission has now received its final major
www.nasa.gov
November 14, 2024 at 5:02 PM
We have a telescope!! It's been a very exciting week here at the Optical Telescope Assembly arrived at GSFC and was unpacked. We now have *all* the pieces of the Observatory here and can start putting them all together and testing the full system!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
Bente is a valuable member of our Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope optical systems team, overseeing all things optical on the telescope assembly!
www.nasa.gov/people-of-na...
www.nasa.gov/people-of-na...
Bente Eegholm: Ensuring Space Telescopes Have Stellar Vision - NASA
Bente Eegholm is an optical engineer working to ensure missions like the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope have stellar vision. When it launches by May 2027,
www.nasa.gov
July 15, 2024 at 10:48 PM
Bente is a valuable member of our Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope optical systems team, overseeing all things optical on the telescope assembly!
www.nasa.gov/people-of-na...
www.nasa.gov/people-of-na...
This is huge, huge progress - Congrats to our partners at L3Harris, and the many people at GSFC that contributed! Telescope performance is looking excellent, but we're not done yet. Gotta see how the telescope works when we take it cold later this summer!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope’s ‘Eyes’ Pass First Vision Test - NASA
Engineers at L3Harris Technologies in Rochester, New York, have combined all 10 mirrors for NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. Preliminary tests show
www.nasa.gov
April 17, 2024 at 3:49 PM
This is huge, huge progress - Congrats to our partners at L3Harris, and the many people at GSFC that contributed! Telescope performance is looking excellent, but we're not done yet. Gotta see how the telescope works when we take it cold later this summer!
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
www.nasa.gov/missions/rom...
Continued impacts of not having a budget yet...
Thinking of my colleagues at JPL on this difficult day.
www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/jpl-wor...
Thinking of my colleagues at JPL on this difficult day.
www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/jpl-wor...
JPL Workforce Update
Workforce statement and memo to employees.
www.jpl.nasa.gov
February 7, 2024 at 11:41 AM
Continued impacts of not having a budget yet...
Thinking of my colleagues at JPL on this difficult day.
www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/jpl-wor...
Thinking of my colleagues at JPL on this difficult day.
www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/jpl-wor...