The Microlensing Planet Finder: Completing the Census of Extrasolar Planets in the Milky Way
Abstract
The Microlensing Planet Finder (MPF) is a proposed Discovery mission that will complete the first census of extrasolar planets with sensitivity to planets like those in our own solar system. MPF will employ a 1.1m aperture telescope, which images a 1.3 sq. deg. field-of-view in the near-IR, in order to detect extrasolar planets with the gravitational microlensing effect. MPF's sensitivity extends down to planets of 0.1 Earth masses, and MPF can detect Earth-like planets at all separations from 0.7AU to infinity. MPF's extrasolar planet census will provide critical information needed to understand the formation and frequency of extra solar planetary systems similar to our own.
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0409218,
title = {The Microlensing Planet Finder: Completing the Census of Extrasolar Planets in the Milky Way},
author = {D. P. Bennett and I. Bond and E. Cheng and S. Friedman and P. Garnavich and B. Gaudi and R. Gilliland and A. Gould and M. Greenhouse and K. Griest and R. Kimble and J. Lunine and J. Mather and D. Minniti and M. Niedner and B. Paczynski and S. Peale and B. Rauscher and M. Rich and K. Sahu and D. Tenerelli and A. Udalski and N. Woolf and P. Yock},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0409218},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
To appear in the Proceedings of the SPIE Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation Symposium held in Glascow, Scotland, on 21-25 June, 2004. 12 PDF pages