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Planetary News: Extrasolar Planets (2007)COROT Sees First Light!January 24, 2007
On the night of January 17-18, 2007, the protective cover of the COROT telescope was successfully opened, and, for the first time, COROT looked out at the stars. The first light detected by the 30-centimeter COROT telescope came from the constellation of the Unicorn near Orion, the great "hunter" whose imposing silhouette stands out in winter nights. Corot will be surveying vast stellar fields to learn about star interiors and to search for extrasolar planets. These early observations allow Corot scientists to prepare for the science phase which will begin in early February. On January 18, the telescope was positioned to begin observations, facing away from the center of our galaxy. Corot will maintain this position until April, when the Sun's rays will start to interfere with the observations. COROT will then rotate by 180 degrees and will start observing toward the center of the Milky Way. COROT was launched by a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on December 27, 2006. Corot orbits in an almost-circular polar orbit ranging between 895-906 kilometers (537-544 miles) altitude over Earth's surface. COROT is a project of France's space agency, the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) with ESA participation. The other major partners in this mission are Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, and Spain. |
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