TESS
Science & Engineering abbreviation · Astronomy & Space
| Stands for | Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite |
|---|---|
| Categories | Science & Engineering |
TESS stands for Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, an astronomy & Space abbreviation.
NASA space telescope launched in April 2018 that surveys nearly the whole sky for planets passing in front of bright, nearby stars. TESS has found hundreds of confirmed planets and thousands of candidates, many suitable for follow-up study of their atmospheres.
Example: TESS discovered an Earth-sized planet in its star's habitable zone only 100 light-years away.
Usage notes
TESS is led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and follows the Kepler mission, which studied one patch of sky in depth. It orbits Earth in a highly elliptical path in resonance with the Moon, a stable orbit never used before. Its targets are typically 30 to 100 times brighter than Kepler's.
Related abbreviations
More astronomy & Space abbreviations
- SLS – Space Launch System
- SMBH – Supermassive black hole
- SN – Supernova
- SOHO – Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
- SRB – Solid rocket booster
- SSO – Sun-synchronous orbit
- TLI – Trans-lunar injection
- TNO – Trans-Neptunian object
- UAP – Unidentified anomalous phenomena
- UFO – Unidentified flying object
- VLA – Very Large Array
- VLT – Very Large Telescope