A powerful next-generation telescope blasted off into space today and was filmed hurtling over Bermuda.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration successfully launched the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on board a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida this morning.

It was spotted and recorded by enthusiast Yolanda Yuan from her home in Flatts at 8.35am.

She said: “I knew the rocket was launching and might pass by us and so I got up quickly and captured it from my patio.

“It only lasted a few seconds and there was no noise that I noticed, just the birds chirping.

“It appeared out of nowhere and disappeared quite quickly.”

Nasa said: “Roman’s wide field of view and rapid survey capabilities will help scientists map billions of galaxies, uncover planets beyond our solar system, study black holes and provide vast volumes of daily data for astronomers to analyse.”

The telescope was named after physicist Nancy Grace Roman, who was the space agency’s first chief astronomer in the 1960s and its first female executive.

It will capture vast panoramic views of space, with a field of vision at least 100 times larger than the famous Hubble Space Telescope.

Ms Yuan, who is an insurance actuary, added: “I was tracking it on YouTube and knew the rocket was launching with a live update, so to see it was pretty cool.

“It was quite exciting and I filmed it minutes after it was launched.

“I actually filmed another one from a plane two years ago when I was flying from Bermuda to America.

“The pilot had announced that if passengers looked to the right they would see the rocket which was already in the sky and above the clouds.

“It was a SpaceX satellite launch and everybody got photos and footage and that was really cool as well.”