Illustration of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) in front of a lava planet orbiting its host star. TESS will identify thousands of potential new planets for further study and observation.A camera on the SpaceX Falcon 9 booster captured the moment of separation as NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) begins its mission.
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Illustration of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) in front of a lava planet orbiting its host star. TESS will identify thousands of potential new planets for further study and observation.NASA/GSFC
A camera on the SpaceX Falcon 9 booster captured the moment of separation as NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) begins its mission.NASA
Feb. 6, 2019
Research Highlight

Picking Planets from the TESS Catalog

With the launch of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) mission last year, scientists are now preparing for the next step in the search for habitable worlds around distant stars. TESS will return a large amount of data on transiting exoplanets that could be targeted for future atmospheric characterization by upcoming missions like the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). In building its catalog of transiting planets, TESS will leave an important legacy that will shape subsequent missions like JWST. It will be vital that scientists can efficiently sort through the TESS catalog to identify the best planets for further study.

NASA’s newest planet-hunter, TESS, will look around the brightest stars closest to our solar system for new worlds.
NASA’s newest planet-hunter, TESS, will look around the brightest stars closest to our solar system for new worlds.Image credit: NASA.

A recent paper outlines two analytic metrics that will help identify the top ‘TESSplanet’ candidates for atmospheric characterization. The metrics were developed using a previously published catalog of simulatedTESS planets. Based on their results, the researchers predict that TESS could provide a sample of around 300 ‘high-quality atmospheric characterization targets,’ which includes some candidates down to the size of Earth.

The primary mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope during assembly in a clean room at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
The primary mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope during assembly in a clean room at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.Image credit: A. Gronstal / NASA Astrobiology.

The study, “A Framework for Prioritizing the TESS Planetary Candidates Most Amenable to Atmospheric Characterization” was published in the Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. The work was supported through NASA’s Habitable Worlds Program. The NASA Astrobiology Program provides resources for Habitable Worlds and other Research and Analysis programs within the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) that solicit proposals relevant to astrobiology research.