The Cheops telescope embarks on an exoplanet exploration mission

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The Cheops telescope embarks on an exoplanet exploration mission

Days have been separating the Cheops telescope since the start of its mission to explore planets outside the solar system, AFP and Natchur reported. The European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing to launch the first ever telescope, not for search, but for a detailed study of the hundreds of about 4,000 exoplanets discovered so far.

Called "CHEOPS" (Characterizing Exoplanet Satellite), the 300-pound unit worth 50m euros will be launched with a Soyuz rocket from the Kuru Space Station in French Guiana on Tuesday.

 

The telescope will be positioned about 700 km above Earth, with its main instrument pointing toward the night side of the planet so as not to interfere with the sun's view of space.

They launch a telescope to search for exoplanets

Equipped with a single camera, Cheops will stare at the stars around which it is already known to orbit exoplanets. Through the transit method, astronomers will try to determine the size and study their atmospheres, obtaining important information about the formation and evolution of diverse worlds outside the solar system.
During his mission, Cheops will study between 300 and 500 exoplanets.

Astronomers discovered the first exoplanet about three decades ago with the help of terrestrial telescopes. Since then, several missions have been launched, aiming to discover more new worlds, including the Kepler Space Telescope retired last year and the TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) launch in April 2018.
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Cheops is the first space telescope designed not to search, but to study already known exoplanets. Among its objects of observation will be a variety of worlds beyond the solar system - from mini-Neptunians close to Earth's to ice and gas giants, explains David Ehrenreich of the University of Geneva, Switzerland.

"Exoplanet detection is now the norm. We need to move on to a new era where we start characterizing them and defining their properties in detail, "says astronomer Matt Griffin. The specialist is part of the team of a future ESA project to explore worlds beyond the solar system.