
SpaceX has launched the $337 million satellite that will carry on the mission of NASA’s Kepler spacecraft, to hunt for planets beyond our solar system in greater detail than ever before.

The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) blasted away from Earth atop a Falcon 9 rocket on schedule at 6:51 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

'As you just saw, Falcon 9 has successfully cleared the pad and is now on its ascent with the TESS spacecraft in its fairing,' the announcers confirmed as the rocket climbed through the sky.

Minutes after launch, SpaceX managed to successfully recover the Falcon 9's first stage by landing it on the ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ droneship in the Atlantic Ocean, roughly 185 miles off the coast.

The first stage could be seen descending toward the landing pad during the live feed, lining itself up almost perfectly with the white X before coming to a neat stop.

The new ‘planet hunter,’ now on its way to begin what scientists have hailed a 'mission for the ages,' is equipped with four cameras that will allow it to view 85 percent of the entire sky, as it searches exoplanets orbiting stars less than 300 light-years away.

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SpaceX has launched the $337 million satellite that will carry on the mission of NASA’s Kepler spacecraft, to hunt for planets beyond our solar system in greater detail than ever before. The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) blasted away from Earth atop a Falcon 9 rocket on schedule at 6:51 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral

By studying objects much brighter than the Kepler targets, it’s hoped TESS could uncover new clues on the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe.

Its launch was originally scheduled for April 16, but was scrubbed last minute due to a rocket control glitch.

But, it took off today on time, with just a 30-second launch window to work with.

Falcon 9's first stage successfully separated just less than 3 minutes after launch, followed by ignition of the second stage engine.

About 42 minutes after launch, the second stage was reignited to set the spacecraft up for its deployment. Then, at about the 50-minute mark, it split off on its own.

'As you can see there, we have had successful separation of the TESS spacecraft, and it’s going on - on its beautiful mission to look at thousands of planets outside of our solar system,' the SpaceX announcer said, wrapping up the webcast.

By studying objects much brighter than the Kepler targets, it’s hoped TESS could uncover new clues on the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe. Its launch was originally scheduled for April 16, but was scrubbed last minute due to a rocket control glitch. But, it took off today on time, with just a 30-second launch window to work with

SpaceX managed to successfully recover Falcon 9's first stage by landing it on the ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ droneship in the Atlantic Ocean, roughly 185 miles off the coast. It can be seen descending in a smooth landing above, causing the live feed to become blurry. The first stage lined itself up almost perfectly with the white X before coming to a neat stop (shown left)

Initially, TESS will settle into a 13.7 day orbit around Earth. After 60 days and a series of instruments tests, TESS will begin its two-year mission.

The TESS spacecraft is equipped with four wide-field cameras to view the sky in 26 segments, each of which it will observe one by one.

In its first year of operation, it will map the 13 sectors that make up the southern sky.

Then, the following year, it will scour the northern sectors.

‘One of the biggest questions in exoplanet exploration is: If an astronomer finds a planet in a star’s habitable zone, will it be interesting from a biologist’s point of view?’ said George Ricker, TESS principal investigator at MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.

‘We expect TESS will discover a number of planets whose atmospheric compositions, which hold potential clues to the presence of life, could be precisely measured by future observers.’

Initially, TESS will settle into a 13.7 orbit around Earth. About 42 minutes after launch, the second stage was reignited to set the spacecraft up for its deployment. Then, at about the 50-minute mark, it split off on its own. 'As you can see there, we have had successful separation of the TESS spacecraft. The second stage falling away after separation

‘TESS will cast a wider net than ever before for enigmatic worlds whose properties can be probed by NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope and other missions,' said Paul Hertz, Astrophysics Division director at NASA’s Headquarters. An artist's impression is pictured

‘We learned from Kepler that there are more planets than stars in our sky, and now TESS will open our eyes to the variety of planets around some of the closest stars,’ said Paul Hertz, Astrophysics Division director at NASA’s Headquarters.

‘TESS will cast a wider net than ever before for enigmatic worlds whose properties can be probed by NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope and other missions.’

The stars TESS will concentrate on are 300 to 100 times brighter than the Kepler targets.

The new ‘planet hunter,’ now on its way to begin what scientists have hailed a 'mission for the ages,' is equipped with four cameras that will allow it to view 85 percent of the entire sky, as it searches exoplanets orbiting stars less than 300 light-years away

This will allow researchers to use spectroscopy to study the planet’s mass, density, and atmospheric composition – revealing if they hold water or other key molecules.

‘TESS is opening a door for a whole new kind of study,’ said Stephen Rinehart, TESS project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

‘We’re going to be able to study individual planets and start talking about the differences between planets.

‘The targets TESS finds are going to be fantastic subjects for research for decades to come. It’s the beginning of a new era of exoplanet research.’

WHAT WERE KEPLER'S TOP FIVE DISCOVERIES? Launched in 2009, the Kepler telescope has helped in the search for planets outside of the solar system. The satellite typically looks for 'Earth-like' planets, meaning they are rocky and orbit within the that orbit within the habitable or 'Goldilocks' zone of a star. If a planet sits within a habitable zone it means it is not too hot or too cold for water to have formed at the planet's surface, one of the key conditions for life. While the planet has found thousands of exoplanets during its eight-year mission, five in particular have stuck out. Kepler-452b, dubbed 'Earth 2.0', shares many characteristics with our planet despite sitting 1,400 light years away. It was found by Nasa's Kepler telescope in 2014 1) 'Earth 2.0' In 2014 the telescope made one of its biggest discoveries when it spotted exoplanet Kepler-452b, dubbed 'Earth 2.0'. The object shares many characteristics with our planet despite sitting 1,400 light years away. It has a similar size orbit to Earth, receives roughly the same amount of sun light and has same length of year. Experts still aren't sure whether the planet hosts life, but say if plants were transferred there, they would likely survive. 2) The first planet found to orbit two stars Kepler found a planet that orbits two stars, known as a binary star system, in 2011. The system, known as Kepler-16b, is roughly 200 light years from Earth. Experts compared the system to the famous 'double-sunset' pictured on Luke Skywalker's home planet Tatooine in 'Star Wars: A New Hope'. The Trappist-1 star system (artist's impression), which hosts a record seven Earth-like planets, was one of the biggest discoveries of 2017. Kepler spotted the system in 2016, but scientists revealed the find in a series of papers released in February this year 3) Finding the first habitable planet outside of the solar system Scientists found Kepler-22b in 2011, the first habitable planet found by astronomers outside of the solar system. The habitable super-Earth appears to be a large, rocky planet with a surface temperature of about 72°F (22°C), similar to a spring day on Earth. 4) Discovering a 'super-Earth' The telescope found its first 'super-Earth' in April 2017, a huge planet called LHS 1140b. It orbits a red dwarf star around 40 million light years away, and scientists think it holds giant oceans of magma. 5) Finding the 'Trappist-1' star system The Trappist-1 star system, which hosts a record seven Earth-like planets, was one of the biggest discoveries of 2017. Each of the planets, which orbit a dwarf star just 39 million light years, likely holds water at its surface. Three of the planets have such good conditions that scientists say life may have already evolved on them. Kepler spotted the system in 2016, but scientists revealed the discovery in a series of papers released in February this year. Advertisement



