Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences (IA) helps launch CHEOPS Telescope into space

CHEOPS launch is set for 17 December 2019, in Guiana Space Centre, in Kourou. CHEOPS is the first S-class mission from ESA and was selected in October 2012.

CHEOPS stands for CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite. It is a small photometric observatory to be launched into low Earth orbit to measure transits of exoplanets.

The Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences (IA), and DEIMOS Engineering participate in the CHEOPS project, in the scope of the Portuguese leadership of the project, which is run by 11 European countries and lead by Switzerland and the ESA.

The telescope will be placed into Earth's orbit by a Russian Soyuz rocket, from Guiana Space centre, in Kourou.

On 16 December, some of the IA members and DEIMO's Engineering will be at the Porto Planetarium to provide some details on the CHEOPS's mission. The following day, on 17 December, Sérgio Sousa, of IA/University of Porto, will be present in Kourou, for the launch. He explains that "IA is strongly involved in this mission, not only scientifically but also technologically, as we were the ones in charge of software calibration".

In turn, Nuno Cardoso Santos, author of the research "Towards the detection and characterization of other Earths" of IA and professor of the faculty of Science of the University of Porto (FCUP), states that "this partnership (IA/ DEIMOS) enabled participating in the CHEOPS mission at the highest level. This shows how science can play such a relevant role in economy".

This mission will help uncover what other planets are there, beyond the solar system, their features and similarities with Earth.