EChO explained

EChO
Mission Type:Astronomy
Operator:ESA
Mission Duration:4–5 years[1]
Launch Mass:2100kg (4,600lb)[2]
Launch Date:2024
Launch Rocket:Soyuz STA/Fregat
Launch Site:Kourou ELS
Launch Contractor:Arianespace
Orbit Reference:Sun–Earth L2
Orbit Regime:Halo or Lissajous
Orbit Epoch:planned
Apsis:apsis
Telescope Type:Cassegrain
Telescope Diameter:1.4m (04.6feet)
Telescope Focal Length:2m (07feet)
Telescope Area:14m2
Telescope Wavelength:from 0.55 μm (orange)
to 11μm (long-infrared)
(goal: 0.4 to 16 μm)

The Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) was a proposed space telescope[3] as part of the Cosmic Vision roadmap of the European Space Agency, and competed with four other missions for the M3 slot in the programme. On 19 February 2014 the PLATO mission was selected in place of the other candidates in the programme, including EChO.[4]

EChO would have been the first dedicated mission to investigate exoplanetary atmospheres, addressing the suitability of those planets for life and placing the Solar System in context. EChO was intended to provide high resolution, multi-wavelength spectroscopic observations. It would have measured the atmospheric composition, temperature and albedo of a representative sample of known exoplanets, constrain models of their internal structure and improve understanding of how planets form and evolve.[5] It would have orbited around the L2 Lagrange point, 1.5 million km from Earth in the anti-sunward direction.

SPEChO

Following PLATO's M3 selection, a proposal to add EChO on the joint Japanese-European SPICA far-infrared telescope emerged.[6] The proposed EChO instrument on SPICA (SPEChO) is a spectrometer covering light wavelengths from 5 to 20 micrometres, and will observe exoplanet atmospheres utilizing transit spectroscopy.[6] [7] As long with a potential to recover the original scientific goals from EChO, SPEChO will enable SPICA to conduct specialized exoplanetary science studies. SPEChO may also be useful for the science case of galaxies.[8] However SPEChO's capabilities overlap with the James Webb Space Telescope's MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), therefore SPEChO's advantages over other instruments has become a focus of whether or not to include it on SPICA.[6] [9]

Other M3 mission candidates

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: EChO mission summary. EChO website. ESA. 28 January 2014. 16 December 2013.
  2. Web site: EChO spacecraft. EChO website. ESA. 28 January 2014. 30 June 2013.
  3. Tinetti . G. . Beaulieu . J. P. . Henning . T. . Meyer . M. . Micela . G. . Ribas . I. . Stam . D. . Swain . M. . Krause . O. . Ollivier . M. . Pace . E. . Swinyard . B. . Aylward . A. . Boekel . R. . Coradini . A. . Encrenaz . T. . Thérèse Encrenaz . Snellen . I. . Zapatero-Osorio . M. R. . Bouwman . J. . Cho . J. Y. K. . Coudé De Foresto . V. . Guillot . T. . Lopez-Morales . M. . Mueller-Wodarg . I. . Palle . E. . Selsis . F. . Sozzetti . P. A. R. . N. . Adriani . A. . Ade . Achilleos . A. . EChO - Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory . 10.1007/s10686-012-9303-4 . 2012ExA....34..311T . 1112.2728 . Experimental Astronomy . 34 . 2 . 311 . 2012 . 118578814 . 29 . 2018-10-23 . 2017-09-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170922043329/http://eprints.ucm.es/37773/1/davidmontes07preprint.pdf . dead .
  4. Web site: ESA selects planet-hunting PLATO mission. ESA. 20 March 2014. 19 February 2014.
  5. Tinetti . G. . Cho . J. Y. K. . Griffith . C. A. . Grasset . O. . Grenfell . L. . Guillot . T. . Koskinen . T. T. . Moses . J. I. . Pinfield . D. . Tennyson . J. . Tessenyi . M. . Wordsworth . R. . Aylward . A. . Van Boekel . R. . Coradini . A. . Encrenaz . T.. Thérèse Encrenaz . Snellen . I. . Zapatero-Osorio . M. R. . Bouwman . J. . Du Foresto . V. C. . Lopez-Morales . M. . Mueller-Wodarg . I. . Pallé . E. . Selsis . F. . Sozzetti . A. . Beaulieu . J. P. . Henning . T. . Micela . G. . Ribas . I. . Meyer . M. . 10.1017/S1743921311020448 . 2011IAUS..276..359T. The science of EChO. Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union . 6 . 359–370 . 2011 . 29 . free .
  6. Web site: SPICA計画の経緯・現状 . Japan Radio Astronomy Forum . PDF . 28 January 2015 . 2017-01-03 . ja . 2017-01-03 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170103132703/http://alma-intweb.mtk.nao.ac.jp/~udencon/symp/symp2014/symp2014-shibai.pdf#page=24 . dead .
  7. Web site: SPICAの現状 . . 5 June 2015 . 2017-01-03 .
  8. Web site: SPICAサイエンス検討中間報告 . Group of Optical and Infrared Astronomers SPICA task force . PDF . 26 November 2014 . 2017-01-03 . ja.
  9. Web site: タスクフォースからの提言 近傍銀河および星惑星系形成分野 . Group of Optical and Infrared Astronomers SPICA task force . 26 November 2014 . 2017-01-03 . ja.

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