Denys Wilkinson Building, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3RH
Professor Monika Lendl
Universite de Geneve
Abstract : The Characterizing Exoplanets Satellite (CHEOPS) is the first ESA space mission dedicated primarily to the study of exoplanetary systems. The satellite, carrying a 30cm photometric telescope, has been launched successfully in December 2019 and has seen first light in January 2020. Throughout it's nominal mission of 3.5 years, it will perform ultra-high precision photometry of bright stars know to host extrasolar planets. Next to searching for transits of planets known from radial velocities and measuring precise radii of known transiting planets, CHEOPS is dedicating approximately 30% of its observing time to characterising exoplanet atmospheres. In this talk, I will describe the CHEOPS space mission, summarise its scientific program and detail how CHEOPS can reveal the properties of planetary atmospheres through optical-light occultations and planetary phase curves. I will present recent mission results and illustrate how these complement ongoing and future observations from the ground and space.