FINDING A WATER WORLD

Data about water worlds has been provided by TESS

1

Looking for transits

TESS has been looking for exoplanets as they cross – or transit – in front of their parent star, blocking some of the light.

2

Stars in its eyes

By surveying

200,000 of the brightest stars, TESS identified 2,100 exoplanet candidates, some of which are the size of Earth or larger.

3

Surveying the sky

The satellite hosts a single instrument which has four identical wide-field cameras, allowing it to scan 85 per cent of the sky.

4

Beaming information

TESS has two solar array wings to provide sufficient power for the cameras. Information is transmitted to Earth at a rate of 100 megabytes per second.