Astronomy · Space Telescopes
Kepler Space Telescope
The telescope that revealed thousands of exoplanets.
- Type
- Optical telescope (exoplanet survey)
- Agency
- NASA
- Method
- Transit photometry
- Retired
- 2018
NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech · NASA media (public domain)
Gallery
Kepler Team Marks Five Years in Space
On March 6, 2009, NASA Kepler Space Telescope rocketed into the night skies above Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to find planets around other stars, called exoplanets, in search of potentially habitable wor…
2014
NASA/Ames · NASA media (public domain)
Watching for transits
The Kepler Space Telescope stared at a single region of sky, monitoring the brightness of many thousands of stars. When a planet crosses in front of its star, it blocks a tiny fraction of the light — a transit — which Kepler could detect.
A flood of planets
Kepler discovered thousands of exoplanets and candidates of many sizes and orbits, demonstrating that planetary systems are common throughout the galaxy.
Legacy
After running low on the fuel needed to point precisely, Kepler was retired in 2018. Its results reshaped our understanding of how many planets exist and set the stage for follow-up surveys.
Knowledge connections
How this connects across Asteria Star — scientific, cultural, and astrological links are kept separate.
Scientific connections
- Associated withPLATO (exoplanet mission)
Observational connections
- ObservesVisible light
Mission connections
- Operated byNASA
- Part of programDiscovery Program
Discovery connections
- Named afterJohannes Kepler
- Discovered2MASS J19383260+4603591 b
- DiscoveredGJ 9827 b
- DiscoveredGJ 9827 c
- DiscoveredGJ 9827 d
- DiscoveredHIP 41378 b
- DiscoveredHIP 41378 c
- DiscoveredHIP 41378 d
- DiscoveredHIP 41378 e
- DiscoveredHIP 41378 f
- DiscoveredK2-18 b
- DiscoveredKepler-100 b
- DiscoveredKepler-100 c
- DiscoveredKepler-100 d
- DiscoveredKepler-11 b
- DiscoveredKepler-11 c
- DiscoveredKepler-11 d
- DiscoveredKepler-11 e
- DiscoveredKepler-11 f
- DiscoveredKepler-11 g
- DiscoveredKepler-122 b
- DiscoveredKepler-122 c
- DiscoveredKepler-122 d
- DiscoveredKepler-122 e
+111 more
Related entries
You might also explore
- Exoplanet catalogueNASA Exoplanet ArchiveLinked through 2MASS J19383260+4603591 b
- Detection methodTransit MethodLinked through GJ 9827 b
- Detection methodTransit Timing VariationsLinked through Kepler-122 f
- Habitable-zone candidateHabitable zoneLinked through K2-18 b
- Host starKepler-11Linked through Kepler-11 b
- Planetary systemKepler-11 systemLinked through Kepler-11 b