Nasa’s Tess spacecraft has embarked on a quest to find new worlds around neighbouring stars that could support life. Tess rode a SpaceX Falcon rocket through the evening sky, aiming for an orbit stretching all the way to the moon. Until about 25 years ago, the only known planets were in our own solar system, noted Nasa’s director of astrophysics, Paul Hertz. Most of Tess’ targets will be cool, common red dwarf stars, thought to be rich breeding grounds for planets. To find the planets, Tess will use the same transit method employed by Kepler, watching for regular, fleeting dips in stellar brightness that would indicate a planet passing in front of its star.

Source: Daily Mail April 19, 2018 00:45 UTC