The purpose of these recordings was to measure the brightness of the stars, which is essential for not only detecting transits by exoplanets but also understanding key aspects of stellar behavior. In addition to the static snapshots, Kepler’s camera also recorded 30-minute segments of selected targets. As the successor to Kepler, this space telescope will similarly rely on Transit Photometry to search for thousands of exoplanets around 200,000 main-sequence dwarf stars. Credit: NASAĭuring this final observation, Kepler’s field of view also slightly overlapped with NASA’s new planet-hunter, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which took to space in April of 2018. NASA’s Kepler space telescope, shown in this artist’s concept, revealed that there are more planets than stars in the Milky Way galaxy. This was also the first time that citizen scientists had discovered a planetary system. Beginning in April of 2017, citizen scientists discovered a system of up to 6 planets while sifting through Kepler data. Kepler also observed GJ 9827, a nearby star where three possible Super-Earths were detected in 2017 – and which are considered excellent candidates for follow-up transit surveys that could reveal things about their atmospheres.Īnd then there was K2-138, a large early K-type (orange dwarf) main sequence star located almost 600 light years away from the Solar System. These included the TRAPPIST-1 system, which became famous in 2017 when astronomers announced that it has a system of seven rocky planets (three of which are located in the stars habitable zone). For this campaign, Kepler was pointed in the direction of the Aquarius constellation, where it caught sight of some renowned star systems. This mission commenced in 2013 and lasted right up until the last of Kepler‘s fuel was expended. The “last light” image was part of Kepler‘s final observation campaign, which was part of its “ K2 Second Light” mission extension.
This image was the result of a 60-second exposure taken on April 8th, 2009 – one day after the spacecraft’s dust cover was jettisoned – and featured a full-field view of a patch of sky in the constellations Cygnus and Lyra. It also comes nine and a half years after Kepler began its exoplanet-hunting journey with its “first light” image (shown above). Kepler’s “first light” image, taken in 2009. However, these did not affect the rest of the instrument, nor did they interfere with Kepler obtaining this last glimpse at the cosmos. The blackened gaps in the center and along the top are the result of earlier random part failures in the camera. 25th, 2018, represents the “last light” obtained by the space telescope. Kepler‘s final image (shown at top), taken on Sept.
On top of that, NASA recently released the “last lighty” image and recordings obtained by Kepler before it ran out of fuel and ended its mission. For starters, NASA started the new year by announcing the discovery of several new exoplanets, including a Super-Earth and a Saturn-sized gas giant, as well as an unusually-sized planet that straddles these two categories. In the coming years, multiple next-generation telescopes will be deployed that will attempt to build on the foundation Kepler built.Īnd yet, even in retirement, Kepler is still providing us with impressive discoveries. With nearly 4000 candidates and 2,662 confirmed exoplanets to its credit, no other telescope has managed to teach us more about the worlds that exist beyond our Solar System. On October 30th, 2018, after nine years of faithful service, the Kepler Space Telescopewas officially retired.