Space.com:
The
European Space
Observatory in Chile is building a successor to the
Super Wide Angle Search for
Planets project called the
Next-Generation Transit
Survey (NGTS). The survey will be looking for planetary
transits of stars, characterized by the dimming of the star's
light. NGTS will survey 100 square degrees, a much wider area
than previous projects. Astronomers will use images of the
transits to measure the planets' radii, and further examination
will measure the radial velocity. With those two measurements
they will be able to determine planetary densities. The NGTS
team hopes that planets found around particularly bright stars
could have their atmospheres analyzed via transmission
spectroscopy.
