Ariel Space Mission

ARIEL DEFINITION STUDY REPORT: Ariel: Enabling planetary science across light-years
November 2020: Link to ESA document ; arxiv:2104.04824

ARIEL ASSESSMENT STUDY REPORT:
March 2017

ARIEL SCIENTIFIC PROPOSAL & OUTCOME OF ESA CDF STUDY:
Link to ESA website

Science-related publications

Reviews:

Tinetti, G., Drossart, P., Eccleston, P. et al., A chemical survey of exoplanets with ARIEL, Exp. Astron. (2018) 46: 135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-018-9598-x

Ariel Special Issue in Experimental Astronomy “Ariel, the ESA M4 mission”, Published in 2022

Ariel Special Issue in Experimental Astronomy “ARIEL – the Atmospheric Remote-sensing Exoplanet Large-survey”, Published in 2018

• Wang F. et al., Constraining the atmospheric elements in hot Jupiters with Ariel, MNRAS, 523, 3, 4365–4380, 2023.
• Bourgalais, J., Carrasco, N., et al. Ions in the Thermosphere of Exoplanets: Observable Constraints Revealed by Innovative Laboratory Experiments. AJ, 895, 77, 2020.
• Changeat Q., Al-Refaie A., Mugnai L.V., Edwards B., Waldmann I. P., Pascale E., Tinetti G. (2020), Alfnoor: A Retrieval Simulation of the Ariel Target List, The Astronomical Journal, 160, 80, 2020.
• Changeat Q., Keyte L., Waldmann I. P., Tinetti G. (2020), Impact of planetary mass uncertainties on exoplanet atmospheric retrievals, The Astrophysical Journal, 896, 107, 2020.
• Dransfield, G.; Triaud, A. H. M. J., Colour-magnitude diagrams of transiting exoplanets – III. A public code, nine strange planets, and the role of phosphine, MNRAS, 499, 505, 2020.
• Changeat Q., B. Edwards, I. P. Waldmann, and G. Tinetti, Toward a More Complex Description of Chemical Profiles in Exoplanet Retrievals: A Two-layer Parameterization, The Astrophysical Journal, 886 39, 2019.
• Zellem R. et al., Constraining Exoplanet Metallicities and Aerosols with the Contribution to ARIEL Spectroscopy of Exoplanets (CASE), PASP, 131, 094401, 2019.
• Sarkar, S. et al., Stellar pulsation and granulation as noise sources in exoplanet transit spectroscopy in the ARIEL space mission, MNRAS, 481, 3, 2871, 2018.
• Tinetti G. et al., The science of ARIEL, Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 99041X (July 29, 2016); doi:10.1117/12.2232370

Performance-related publications

• Mugnai L et al., ExoRad2: Generic point source radiometric model, 2022 https://ascl.net/2210.006.
• Mugnai, L. V.; Pascale, E.; Edwards, B.; Papageorgiou, A.; Sarkar, S.; ArielRad: the Ariel radiometric model; Experimental Astronomy, 50, 303, 2020.
• Sarkar S., E. Pascale, A. Papageorgiou, L. Johnson, I. Waldmann, ExoSim: the Exoplanet Observation Simulator, Exp. Astron., 51, 287-317, 2021, arXiv:2002.03739, DOI:10.1007/s10686-020-09690-9.

Ariel targets publications

• Kokori A. et al., ExoClock Project. III. 450 New Exoplanet Ephemerides from Ground and Space Observations, ApJS, 265, 4, 2023. DOI 10.3847/1538-4365/ac9da4
• Magrini L et al. Ariel stellar characterisation: I. Homogeneous stellar parameters of 187 FGK planet host stars: Description and validation of the method, A&A, 663, 2022.
• Danielski C. et al., The homogeneous characterisation of Ariel host stars, Exp. Astron. 53, 473-510, 2022.
• Edwards B, Tinetti G. The Ariel Target List: The Impact of TESS and the Potential for Characterising Multiple Planets Within a System , AJ, Volume 164, 15, 2022.
• Mugnai L.V. et al. Alfnoor: Assessing the Information Content of Ariel’s Low-resolution Spectra with Planetary Population Studies , AJ, 162, 288, 2021.
• Brucalassi A. et al., Determination of stellar parameters for Ariel targets: a comparison analysis between different spectroscopic methods, Exp. Astron, 53, 511-532
• Kokori A. et al. ExoClock Project. II. A Large-scale Integrated Study with 180 Updated Exoplanet Ephemerides ApJS, 258, 40, 2022.
• Edwards B. N. et al, Original Research By Young Twinkle Students (ORBYTS): Ephemeris Refinement of Transiting Exoplanets , MNRAS, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staa1245.
• Edwards B. N. et al., Original Research by Young Twinkle Students (Orbyts): Ephemeris Refinement of Transiting Exoplanets II , Research Notes of the AAS, 4, 7, 109, 2020.
• Edwards, B. N.; L. Mugnai, G. Tinetti, E. Pascale, and S. Sarkar (2019) An Updated Study of Potential Targets for Ariel, AJ, 157 242.
• Zingales, T., Tinetti, G., Pillitteri, I., Leconte, J., Micela, G.; The ARIEL Mission Reference Sample, Experimental Astronomy, 46, pp. 67, 2018.

Ariel Data Challenges publications

• Hou Yip, K et al. ESA-Ariel Data Challenge NeurIPS 2022: Inferring Physical Properties of Exoplanets From Next-Generation Telescopes , Neural Information Processing Systems 2022 (NeurIPS 2022), in press.
• Changeat Q., Yip K H, ESA-Ariel Data Challenge NeurIPS 2022: introduction to exo-atmospheric studies and presentation of the Atmospheric Big Challenge (ABC) Databasehttps://doi.org/10.1093/rasti/rzad001, RASTI, 2, 1, pp.45-61, 2023.
• Nikolaou N. et al. Lessons Learned from the 1st ARIEL Machine Learning Challenge: Correcting Transiting Exoplanet Light Curves for Stellar Spots , RASTI, 2023. 
• Yip, Hou K. et al., Peeking inside the Black Box: Interpreting Deep Learning Models for Exoplanet Atmospheric Retrievals; ApJ, 2021.

Payload-related publications

• Guerriero E. et al. Heat treatment procedure of the aluminium 6061-T651 for the Ariel telescope mirrors , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218014, 2022.
• Pace E. et al. The telescope assembly of the Ariel space mission , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218011, 2022.
• Chioetto P et a. Preliminary analysis of ground-to-flight mechanical tolerances of the Ariel mission telescope , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 121804R, 2022.
• Bowles N. et al. Ground calibration of the Ariel space telescope: optical ground support equipment design and description , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218049, 2022.
• Focardi M. et al. Preliminary surface charging analysis of Ariel payload dielectrics in early transfer orbit and L2-relevant space environment , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218047, 2022.
• Noce V. et al. The detector control unit of the fine guidance sensor instrument on-board the ARIEL mission: design status , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218046, 2022.
• Noce V. et al. The instrument control unit of the ARIEL payload: design evolution following the unit and payload subsystems SRR (system requirements review) , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 121804, 2022.
• Gottini D. et al. FEA testing the pre-flight Ariel primary mirror , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218042, 2022.
• Tozzi A. et al. Toward ARIEL’s primary mirror , Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218040, 2022.
• Martignac J. et al., AIRS: ARIEL IR spectrometer status, Proceedings of the SPIE, 12180, 1218012, 2022.
• Puig. L. et al.; The ESA Ariel mission is ready for implementation, SPIE, 11443, 1144310, https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2561273
• Mösenlechner, G. et al.; Architectural design of the ARIEL FGS software, SPIE, 11452, 114521F, 2021; https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2562201.
• Crouzet P. E. et al., Impact of proton radiation on the Ariel AIRS CH1 HAWAII-1RG MWIR detector, SPIE, 11454, 114540A, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2561267.
• Chioetto P. et al., The primary mirror of the Ariel mission: cryotesting of aluminum mirror samples with protected silver coating, SPIE, 11451, 114511A, 2020.
• Naponiello L. et al., The role of the instrument control unit within the ARIEL Payload and its current design, SPIE, 11443, 114434P, 2020.
• Middleton K. F. et al., An integrated payload design for the atmospheric remote-sensing infrared exoplanet large-survey (ARIEL): results from phase A and forward look to phase B1, SPIE, 11180, 1118036, 2019.
• Puig, L., Pilbratt, G., Heske, A. et al., The Phase A study of the ESA M4 mission candidate ARIEL, Exp Astron (2018) 46: 211. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-018-9604-3
• Focardi, M., Pace, E., Farina, M. et al., The ARIEL Instrument Control Unit design, Exp Astron (2018) 46: 1. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-017-9560-3
• Da Deppo, V., Focardi, M., Middleton, K. et al., An afocal telescope configuration for the ESA ARIEL mission, CEAS Space J (2017) 9: 379. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12567-017-0175-3
• Puig L.; Pilbratt G. L.; A. Heske; I. Escudero Sanz; Crouzet P. E., ARIEL: an ESA M4 mission candidate, Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 99041W (29 July 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2230964
• Eccleston P. et al., An integrated payload design for the Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey (ARIEL)​, Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 990433 (July 29, 2016); doi:10.1117/12.2232878
• Focardi M. et al, The Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanets Large-survey (ARIEL) payload electronic subsystems, Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 990436 (July 29, 2016); doi:10.1117/12.2231683
• Da Peppo V. et al., Design of an afocal telescope for the ARIEL mission, Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 990434 (July 29, 2016); doi:10.1117/12.2230969

more publications

Ariel Data Challenge Press Release (08/24) – Decode Exoplanet Atmospheres Using AI: Ariel Data Challenge 2024 Awaits

The study of extrasolar planets and ultimately the search for habitable worlds beyond our solar system is one of the most exciting frontiers in modern science, but a major obstacle stands in the way of unlocking the secrets of exoplanet atmospheres.

The Ariel Data Challenge 2024 is calling all data scientists, astronomers, and AI enthusiasts to help tackle one of astronomy’s most complex and important data analysis problems— extracting faint exoplanetary signals from noisy space telescope observations.

The NeurIPS 2024, a world-renowned machine learning conference, will feature an exciting competition based on the Ariel Space Mission. This contest offers participants a unique chance to contribute to cutting-edge research in the fascinating field of exoplanet atmospheres. With a substantial prize pool of $50,000 USD at stake, the competition aims to
attract top talent and innovative solutions.

Dr. Kai Hou (Gordon) Yip, Ariel Data Challenge Lead, UCL said:
“We are excited to see the innovative solutions that the global data science community can bring to this formidable task.”

This groundbreaking challenge has been made possible through a collaborative effort led by UCL Centre for Space Exochemistry Data, bringing together an impressive international team of academic partners including Centre National D’études Spatiales, Cardiff University, Sapienza Università di Roma, and Institut Astrophysique de Paris. The competition is generously sponsored by Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales, in collaboration with Kaggle Competitions Research Program. It also benefits from the support of a consortium of leading space agencies and institutions, including the UK Space Agency, European Space Agency, STFC RAL Space, and STFC DiRAC HPC Facility.

Dr Caroline Harper, Head of Space Science, UK Space Agency said:
“By supporting this challenge, we aim to find new ways of using AI and Machine Learning to develop our understanding of the universe.

Exoplanets are likely to be more numerous in our galaxy than the stars themselves and the techniques developed through this prestigious competition could help open new windows for us to learn about the composition of their atmospheres, and even their weather.

The UK Space Agency’s investment in cutting-edge space science research is essential for supporting innovative missions like this, that can benefit people, businesses, and communities across the globe. We can’t wait to see the results.”

Dr Theresa Rank-Lueftinger, Project Scientist for the ESA Ariel Mission, ESA said:
“Every noisy signal from our space telescopes could hide the key to understanding remote atmospheres. Our job is to unlock that potential with innovative machine learning approaches. It will be amazing to see what the AI community comes up with!”

Ms Pascale Danto, Project Scientist In charge of the French contribution to Ariel Mission, CNES (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales) said:
“Astrophysics space missions are now producing huge amount of data and AI is becoming essential to process all the information and take giant steps in understanding our universe.”

Understanding the atmospheres of exoplanets

The discovery of exoplanets has transformed our cosmic perspective, challenging conventional notions about the nature of the Solar System, the Earth’s uniqueness and the potential for life elsewhere.

As of today, we are aware of over 5,600 exoplanets. However, detecting these worlds is only the initial step; we must also comprehend and characterise their nature by studying their atmospheres.

The European Space Agency’s Ariel Space Mission will be launched in 2029 and will complete one of the largest ever surveys of these planets by observing the atmospheres of around one fifth of the known exoplanets.

Paul Eccleston, Ariel Mission Consortium Manager, RAL Space, said:
“It’s an exciting time for Ariel and for RAL Space involvement, where we’re due to start building the payload structural model in the coming months. It’s also a busy time for other parts of the consortium, including those that are pre-empting data challenges we might face after launch. The Ariel Data Challenge will be incredibly useful for us in this respect, but it’s also a great opportunity for participants to get involved and contribute to a very exciting mission. Good luck to those taking part!”

However, observing these atmospheres and deriving their properties is a formidable challenge. These atmospheric signals only account for a minute fraction of the starlight received from the planetary systems, and are regularly corrupted by instrument noise.

Prof. Ingo Waldmann, Professor of Astrophysics, UCL (University College London) and Ariel Data Challenge co-lead said:
“Modern astrophysics poses big-data problems that can best, and sometimes only, be solved using modern AI techniques. This problem in particular lends itself to fresh approaches, and I am very excited to see what new solutions the AI community will come up with. ”

The Ariel Data Challenge

The Ariel Data Challenge 2024 focuses on overcoming these noise sources, such as “jitter noise” caused by spacecraft vibrations. This noise, along with other disturbances, complicates the analysis of spectroscopic data used to study exoplanet atmospheres.

With support from DiRAC HPC Facility, Mission Scientists have meticulously produced the most accurate representation of Ariel observations to date, based on Ariel’s payload design and incorporating representative noise effects from in-flight data obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Professor Mark Wilkinson, DiRAC High Performance Computing facility said:
“The complexity and volume of incoming data from Ariel, combined with the advanced AI techniques used in this challenge will help to drive the ongoing revolution of exo-planetary science.

I am delighted that, in 2024, DiRAC has been able to support the Ariel Data Challenge by providing the computing resources to generate the dataset which the AI community will be tasked with analysing.”

Scientists involved in the Ariel mission now seek novel methods to push the boundaries of current data analysis approaches – innovative solutions that can effectively suppress these noise sources and extract vital signals from exoplanet atmospheres.

Dr Lorenzo v. Mugnai, Postdoctoral Researcher, Cardiff University, said:
“As astronomers, we’ve been dealing with these noise reduction issues for decades. We’ve used that experience to put together this challenge, and now we’re excited to see the fresh ideas and solutions this community will come up with.”

Dr Andrea Bocchieri, Postdoctoral Researcher, Sapienza Università di Roma, said: “The Ariel Data Challenge 2024 sits at the intersection of observation, instrumentation, and interpretation of exoplanet data, where the complexities of each coalesce, and machine learning can really make a difference.”

The Ariel Data Challenge calls on the AI community to investigate solutions with potential to facilitate breakthroughs in this field.

Orphée Faucoz, Data Scientist, Centre National D’études Spatiales, said:
“Unleash your inner astronomer, join our data challenge and unravel the hidden signals of the universe. Thanks to AI, we can offer a new perspective on the formation of exoplanets and gain insight into the mysteries of the universe!”

Dr Pierre Drossart, Research scientist, Institut d’astrophysique de Paris, said:
“The Ariel Data Challenges is for the IAP Ariel investigators an opportunity to enter in the field of the AI community, which is expanding rapidly in all science domains. The question of classical vs machine learning approaches in detrending the instrumental data is still highly debated, and investigating both approaches is at the heart of our science involvement in Ariel and other missions in IAP.”

Dr Virginie Batista, Research Engineer, Institut d’astrophysique de Paris said:
“The data are multidimensional and affected by complex and high-amplitude noise in comparison to the tiny atmospheric features we try to extract, the task is really challenging. We are eager to discover the ideas that the Ariel Data Challenge 2024 will inspire.”

The competition

The competition is open now until late October. Winners will be invited to present their solutions at the prestigious NeurIPS conference, with cash prizes available for the top six solutions.

This competition is made possible through the support of Kaggle Competitions Research Program, the UK Space Agency, European Space Agency, Centre National D’études Spatiales, STFC RAL Space, and STFC DiRAC, with contributions from University College London, Centre National D’études Spatiales, Cardiff University, Sapienza Università di Roma, and Institut Astrophysique de Paris.

More details about the competition and how to take part can be found on the Ariel Data Challenge website. Follow @ArielTelescope on X/Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram for more updates.

To continue reading the full Ariel press release, click HERE

Ariel Press Release (08/23) – Ariel Passes Major Milestone

Ariel, the European Space Agency’s next-generation mission to observe the chemical make-up of distant extrasolar planets, has passed a major milestone after successfully completing its Payload Preliminary Design Review (PDR). The successful completion of the Payload PDR marks a crucial step forward for Ariel, demonstrating that the mission’s payload design meets all the required technical and scientific specifications, and no showstoppers were found for the foreseen launch in 2029.

The Ariel consortium payload team prepared 179 technical documents and addressed 364 questions (RIDs) for a panel of ESA experts, who evaluated the feasibility, performance, and robustness of the payload design. The review scrutinised every aspect of the proposed payload, to ensure that the designed systems meet the technical, scientific, and operational requirements of the mission. In May 2023 the ESA review board accepted that all the objectives had been completed, and confirmed the successful closure of the Ariel Payload PDR.  

As a result of this major achievement, Ariel’s payload critical technology is now considered at Technical Readiness Level 6, indicating that the mission can now proceed to payload CDR (Critical Design Review) and begin to manufacture its first prototype models.

Paul Eccleston, Ariel Consortium Manager and Chief Engineer at RAL Space, is very pleased with the outcome and has thanked the international payload team engineers “for the enormous amount of work they’ve put in both before, during and after the payload PDR, especially while also keeping all the consortium work on track and the internal design work to plan. We look forward to continuing to work with ESA and Airbus on the construction of Ariel.”

The Ariel payload is developed by a consortium of more than 50 institutes from 16 ESA countries – which include the UK, France, Italy, Poland, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Denmark, Hungary, Portugal, Ireland, Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Estonia. Contributions from NASA, JAXA and the Canadian Space Agency have recently been confirmed.

National Space Agencies supporting the Ariel consortium and payload have expressed great satisfaction with the outcome of the Payload PDR:

Caroline Harper, Head of Space Science at the UK Space Agency (UKSA), said: “Just one year after the UK Space Agency confirmed a £30 million investment into the Ariel programme, this is a significant moment for everybody involved. The UK is right at the heart of the mission, with Ariel’s international science consortium being led by Prof Giovanna Tinetti of University College London. UK engineers and scientists at RAL, UCL, Oxford and Cardiff Universities are also leading on the development of the science instrument payload, and contributing key elements of the spacecraft itself.”

Barbara Negri, Head of the Human Flights and Scientific Experimentation unit at the Italian Space Agency (ASI), commented: “The main Italian contribution to Ariel payload is the design, construction and testing of the telescope, a very challenging project as the science needs require a cryogenic instrument, working at -220°C. The conclusion of the PDR is a major step in the process, very gratifying for national science team and companies involved. ASI is equally satisfied with the other valuable Italian responsibilities: the instrument control electronics and the leadership of our scientists at payload system level for electronics and thermal aspects.”

Pascale Danto, Ariel Program Manager at the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), stated “Thanks to all the Ariel team for the excellent work, and special thanks to the French team in charge of the Infra Red Spectrometer AIRS, which is key to achieve Ariel’s science goals. AIRS is under CNES responsibility and developed by a joint team CEA-CNRS-CNES, gathering our expertise to reach the best performance. After this important milestone, activities are now focused on the first hardware deliveries. Bravo à tous!”

Iwona Stanisławska, Director of the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences (CBK PAN), said: “We are excited to work on such a ground-breaking space mission as Ariel in close collaboration with world’s most important scientific and space centers. It shows that we have built an excellent brand and became a trusted partner. CBK PAN is responsible for the design and construction of the fine guidance system and visible/Near-infrared optical instrument, pivotal for the pointing and characterisation of the Ariel targets.”

To continue reading the full Ariel press release, click HERE

Ariel Data Challenge Press Release (04/2023) – Calling AI experts! Join the hunt for exoplanets.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) experts have been challenged to help a new space mission to investigate Earth’s place in the universe.

The Ariel Data Challenge 2023, which launches on 14 April, is inviting AI and machine learning experts from industry and academia to help astronomers understand planets outside our solar system, known as exoplanets.

Dr Ingo Waldmann, Associate Professor in Astrophysics, UCL (University College London) and Ariel Data Challenge lead said:

“AI has revolutionised many fields of science and industry in the past years. The field of exoplanets has fully arrived in the era of big-data and cutting edge AI is needed to break some of our biggest bottlenecks holding us back.” 

Understanding our place in the universe

For centuries, astronomers could only glimpse the planets in our solar system but in recent years, thanks to telescopes in space, they have discovered more than 5000 planets orbiting other stars in our galaxy.

The European Space Agency’s Ariel telescope will complete one of the largest-ever surveys of these planets by observing the atmospheres of around one-fifth of the known exoplanets.

Due to the large number of planets in this survey, and the expected complexity of the captured observations, Ariel mission scientists are calling for the help of the AI and machine learning community to help interpret the data.

Ariel Data Challenge

Ariel will study the light from each exoplanet’s host star after it has travelled through the planet’s atmosphere in what is known as a spectrum. The information from these spectra can help scientists investigate the chemical makeup of the planet’s atmosphere and discover more about these planets and how they formed.

Scientists involved in the Ariel mission need a new method to interpret these data. Advanced machine learning techniques could help them to understand the impact of different atmospheric phenomena on the observed spectrum.

The Ariel Data Challenge calls on the AI community to investigate solutions. The competition is open from 14 April to 18t June 2023.

Participants are free to use any model, algorithm, data pre-processing technique or other tools to provide a solution. They may submit as many solutions as they like and collaborations between teams are welcomed.

This year, the competition also offers participants access to High Powered Computing resources through DiRAC, part of the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council’s computing facilities.

Kai Hou (Gordon) Yip, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UCL and Ariel Data Challenge Lead said:

“With the arrival of next-generation instrumentation, astronomers are struggling to keep up with the complexity and volume of incoming exo-planetary data. The ECML-PKDD data challenge 2023 provides an excellent platform to facilitate cross-disciplinary solutions with AI experts.”

The competition

Winners will be invited to present their solutions at the prestigious ECML conference. The top three winning teams will be receive sponsored tickets to ECML-PKDD in Turing or the cash equivalent.

Winners will also be invited to present their solutions to the Ariel consortium.

The UK Space Agency, Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), European Research Council, UKRI Science and Technology Funding Council (STFC), STFC Distributed Research Utilising Advanced Computing (DiRAC), STFC Scientific Computing, European Space Agency and Europlanet Society support the competition.

We are also grateful for the support of our partnering organisations: The Alan Turing Institute, French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), INAF – National Institute for Astrophysics, ML Analytics, UK Space Agency, STFC RAL Space, SpaceFlux, Sapienza University of Rome, University of Padova, University of Vienna, UCL DISI, Brandeis University, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan and UCL Centre for Planetary Sciences.

For the first time, DiRAC is providing free access to GPU computing resources to selected participants. The application is open for all.

Previous competition

This is the fourth Ariel Machine Learning Data challenge following successful competitions in 2019, 2021 and 2022. The 2022 challenge welcomed 230 participating teams from across the world, including entrants from leading academic institutes and AI companies.

This challenge and its predecessor have taken a bite-sized aspect of a larger problem to help make exoplanet research more accessible to the machine-learning community. These challenges are not designed to solve the data analysis issues faced by the mission outright but provide a forum for new ideas, discussions and to encourage future collaborations.

More details about the competition and how to take part can be found on the Ariel Data Challenge website. Follow @ArielTelescope for more updates.

To continue reading the full Ariel press release, click HERE

ExoClock Press Release (09/2022) – ExoClock Counts Down Ariel Exoplanet Targets 

Details of the orbits of 450 candidate exoplanet targets of the European Space Agency’s Ariel space mission have been presented this week at the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) 2022, and submitted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. The study, coordinated by the ExoClock (www.exoclock.space) project, has been co-authored by 217 professional and amateur astronomers, as well as university and high school students.

“The ethos of ExoClock can be described in three key words: inclusive, interactive, and integrated. It is open to everyone and accepts contributions from amateur astronomers, students, schools and public citizens,” said Anastasia Kokori, ExoClock project coordinator. “This is the third paper produced by the ExoClock team. The majority of the authors are amateur observers – around 160 – and this significant number highlights the interest and the value of the amateur community in contributing to space research.”

Ariel will study a population of more than 1000 exoplanets to characterise their atmospheres. The ExoClock project, which launched in September 2019, aims to support the long-term monitoring of exoplanets through regular observations using small and medium scale telescopes. 

Participants submit measurements known as ‘light curves’, which show the drop in intensity as a planet ‘transits’ or passes in front of its host star and blocks some of the light. When Ariel launches in 2029, it will need to have precise knowledge of the expected transit time of each exoplanet that it observes, in order to maximise the mission’s efficiency and impact.

“The new study showed that over 40% of ephemerides for proposed Ariel targets needed to be updated. This highlights the important role that the ExoClock community can play in monitoring the Ariel targets frequently,” said Tsiaras. 

ExoClock participants schedule and carry out observations, analyse the data and submit their results for review and feedback from members of the science team. This interactive process helps maintain consistency in results, and enriches the experience of the participants who learn through dialogue.

The results show that small and medium sized telescopes can successfully observe ephemerides for the large majority of the Ariel candidate targets. They also show how observations by amateur astronomers using their own telescopes can contribute to real science and have a high impact for a mission. The project helps to integrate Ariel with other space missions, ground-based telescopes, literature data and wider society, making best use of all available resources.

Kokori said: “Science is for everyone, and we are very happy that through the project everyone can be part of a real space mission. Our observers come from more than 35 countries and have different backgrounds. It is wonderful to see so many people willing to learn and work together in a collaborative spirit. Our team keeps growing daily with participants from all over the world.” 

Further information

The project is part of the Ariel ephemerides working group, aiming to refine the ephemerides of Ariel targets. 

The updated ephemerides were produced as a result of a combination of around 18000 data points: 2911 observations from the ExoClock network, 12633 light curves from space telescopes, 2442 mid-time points from the literature and 184 observations provided by the Exoplanet Transit Database (ETD). 

The pre-print of the publication is available at: https://arxiv.org/abs/2209.09673

The database is accessible at OSF: https://osf.io/p298n/

Science Contacts

Anastasia Kokori
UCL
London, UK
anastasia.kokori.19@ucl.ac.uk

Angelos Tsiaras 
Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory – INAF
Florence, Italy
angelos.tsiaras@inaf.it

MEDIA CONTACTS

EPSC2022 Press Office
+44 7756 034243
epsc-press@europlanet-society.org

FURTHER INFORMATION 

About the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) 

The Europlanet Science Congress (https://www.epsc2022.eu/) formerly the European Planetary Science Congress, is the annual meeting of the Europlanet Society. With a track record of 16 years, and regularly attracting around 1000 participants, EPSC is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.

Follow on Twitter via @europlanetmedia and using the hashtag #EPSC2022.

Details of media briefings and recordings can be found at: https://www.europlanet-society.org/press-briefings-at-epsc2022/

All Europlanet media releases can be found at: https://www.europlanet-society.org/press/

About Europlanet

Since 2005, Europlanet (www.europlanet-society.org) has provided Europe’s planetary science community with a platform to exchange ideas and personnel, share research tools, data and facilities, define key science goals for the future, and engage stakeholders, policy makers and European citizens with planetary science.  In 2022, EPSC is held jointly with the European Astrobiology Network Association (EANA) annual meeting.

The Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (RI) has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149 to provide access to state-of-the-art research facilities and a mechanism to coordinate Europe’s planetary science community. 

The Europlanet Society promotes the advancement of European planetary science and related fields for the benefit of the community and is open to individual and organisational members. The Europlanet Society is the parent organisation of the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC).

About EANA
The European Astrobiology Network Association (http://www.eana-net.eu), joins together people interested in the origins of life and the search for extraterrestrial life in the Solar System and beyond. This interdisciplinary domain involves scientists from multiple disciplines such as chemistry, physics, biology, geology, astronomy, and human sciences.  

Ariel Press Release (06/2022) – Calling AI experts! Join the hunt for exoplanets

Artificial Intelligence (AI) experts have been challenged to help a new space mission to investigate Earth’s place in the universe.

The Ariel Data Challenge 2022, which launches on 30^th June, is inviting AI and machine learning experts from industry and academia to help astronomers understand planets outside our solar system, known as exoplanets.

Dr Ingo Waldmann, Associate Professor in Astrophysics, UCL (University College London) and Ariel Data Challenge lead said:

“AI has revolutionised many fields of science and industry in the past years. The field of exoplanets has fully arrived in the era of big-data and cutting edge AI is needed to break some of our biggest bottlenecks holding us back.” 

Understanding our place in the universe

For centuries, astronomers could only glimpse the planets in our solar system but in recent years, thanks to telescopes in space, they have discovered more than 5000 planets orbiting other stars in our galaxy.

The European Space Agency’s Ariel telescope will complete one of the largest ever surveys of these planets by observing the atmospheres of around one fifth of the known exoplanets.  

Due to the large number of planets in this survey, and the expected complexity the captured observations, Ariel mission scientists are calling for the help of the AI and machine learning community to help interpret the data.

Ariel Data Challenge

Ariel will study the light from each exoplanet’s host star after it has travelled through the planet’s atmosphere in what is known as a spectrum. The information from these spectra can help scientists investigate the chemical make-up of the planet’s atmosphere and discover more about these planets and how they formed.

Scientists involved in the Ariel mission need a new method to interpret these data. Advanced machine learning techniques could help them to understand the impact of different atmospheric phenomena on the observed spectrum.

The Ariel Data Challenge calls on the AI community to investigate solutions. The competition is open from 30^th June to early October.

Participants are free to use any model, algorithm, data pre-processing technique or other tools to provide a solution. They may submit as many solutions as they like and collaborations between teams are welcomed.

For the first time, this year the competition is also offering 20 participants access to High Powered Computing resource through DiRAC, part of the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council’s computing facilities.

Kai Hou (Gordon) Yip, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UCL and Ariel Data Challenge Lead said:

“With the arrival of next-generation instrumentation, astronomers are struggling to keep up with the complexity and volume of incoming exo-planetary data. The NeurIPS data challenge 2022 provides an excellent platform to facilitate cross-disciplinary solutions with AI experts.”

The competition

Winners will be invited to present their solution at the prestigious NeurIPS conference. First prize winning teams will be awarded $2,000 and second prize winners will receive $500.

Winners will also be invited to present their solution to the Ariel consortium.

The competition is supported by the UK Space Agency, European Research Council, European Space Agency and Europlanet Society.

Previous competition

This is the third Ariel Machine Learning Data challenge following successful competitions in 2019 and 2021. The 2021 challenge welcomed 130 participants from across Europe, including entrants from leading academic institutes and AI companies.

This challenge, and its predecessor have taken a bite-sized aspect of a larger problem to help make exoplanet research more accessible to the machine learning community. The challenge is not designed to solve the data analysis issues faced by the mission outright but provides a forum for discussion and to encourage future collaborations.

More details about the competition and how to take part can be found on the Ariel Data Challenge website. Follow @ArielTelescope for more updates.

To continue reading the full Ariel press release, click HERE

Ariel Press Release (06/22) – ESA member states sign new Ariel collaboration agreement

European Space Agency (ESA) member states have signed a new agreement on 8 June to confirm roles for the Ariel mission.   

During its four year mission, Ariel will improve our understanding of what exoplanets are made of, how they were formed and how they evolve. Scientific data will be released to the scientific community and general public at regular intervals throughout its planned four-year operational phase.

Ariel, which was proposed by an international consortium led by UCL (University College London), was selected by ESA from 26 proposals put forward to be the next medium class mission in its science programme. A consortium of more than 50 institutes from 17 countries will work together to build the mission’s payload module.

The agreement between ESA member states ensures that the work taking place across the consortium continues to be supported by their national agencies.

Professor Giovanna Tinetti, Principal Investigator and science development lead for Ariel at UCL, said:

“Ariel will be transformational in helping us understand the planets in our galaxy. By studying hundreds of diverse worlds in different environments, we will see our own planet in context, giving us a better sense of why Earth formed as it did.”

Paul Eccleston, Ariel Consortium Programme Manager and Chief Engineer at the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s RAL Space said:

“Ariel is bringing together scientists, engineers and technicians from across Europe to deliver this fantastic mission which will allow us to study planets outside our solar system and understand our place in the universe. I’m proud of the progress the consortium has already made to design the payload. These ties are only set to strengthen as we progress towards launch.”

A payload design review will be completed later this year, with the design expected to be finalised by 2025. A flight acceptance review will be completed in early 2029 ahead of launch later that year.

Find out more from: UK Space Agency
To read the Ariel press release in PDF, click HERE

Ariel Press Release (12/2021) – Airbus will build ESA’s Ariel exoplanet satellite

The European Space Agency (ESA) and Airbus have signed a contract to move forward with the design and construction of the Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey (Ariel). Work on the Ariel payload module by the Ariel Mission Consortium is already well underway and the two teams will be working closely together to deliver the mission for launch in 2029.

 “With this milestone for the Ariel mission we celebrate the continuation of the outstanding relationship with our industry partners to keep Europe at the forefront of excellence in the field of exoplanet research well into the next decade and beyond,” says Günther Hasinger, ESA’s Director of Science.

The contract was celebrated between the two parties with a small ceremony at ESA headquarters in Paris on 6 December.

Airbus will lead the European industrial consortium building the satellite bus. The Toulouse facility in France will be the main site for designing, manufacturing and integrating the spacecraft elements, while Airbus Stevenage in the UK will lead the engineering of the avionics, radio frequency communication and electrical design of the platform.

“Airbus has extensive experience of leading ground-breaking science missions, including Juice, Gaia, Solar Orbiter, Lisa Pathfinder and Cheops, on which we are building for ESA’s latest science mission, Ariel,” said Jean-Marc Nasr, head of Space Systems at Airbus.

The mission’s payload module, which includes a one metre-class cryogenic telescope and associated science instruments, is provided by the Ariel Mission Consortium. The consortium comprises more than 50 institutes from 17 European countries. NASA also contributes to the payload. In 2021 the Consortium completed ten reviews covering each of the payload subsystems to ensure that the teams understand what needs to be built and that the preliminary designs for each part are feasible and, crucially, will work together correctly.

“The international Ariel Mission Consortium been making fantastic progress with the payload. We are looking forward to working closely with Airbus to ensure the payload works perfectly on board the spacecraft. Together we will be enabling amazing new discoveries about planets beyond our Solar System” said Paul Eccleston, Ariel Mission Consortium Project Manager and RAL Space Chief Engineer.

To continue reading the full Ariel press release, click HERE
To read the ESA press release, click HERE

Ariel Press Release (09/2021) – Winners announced for the Ariel Data Challenge!

Artificial intelligence (AI) experts from around the world have been competing for the opportunity to help astronomers to explore planets in our local galactic neighbourhood.

The European Space Agency’s Ariel telescope, which launches in 2029, will study the atmospheres of around 1000 planets outside our solar system, known as exoplanets.

Observing faint signals to measure the make-up of exoplanet atmospheres is incredibly challenging and is made even more so by other signals the instrument may pick up. The effect of star activity, like sun spots, and even the noise of the spacecraft itself can obscure the information scientists receive from Ariel.

The Ariel Machine Learning Data Challenge, sponsored by Spaceflux Ltd, was set to harness the expertise of the artificial intelligence community to help disentangle this unwanted noise from the light filtering through exoplanet atmospheres. Over 110 teams from around the world participated with 35 teams submitting viable solutions. The teams represented a mix of academia and AI companies.

The competition winners, ML Analytics, an artificial intelligence company in Portugal, and a team from TU Dortmund University in Germany were able to achieve highly accurate solutions for even the most difficult to observe planets.

To continue reading the full press release, follow this link:
Winners announced for the machine vs stellar and instrument noise data challenge

Ariel Press Release (11/2020) – The European Space Agency formally adopts Ariel, the exoplanet explorer

The European Space Agency (ESA) have formally adopted Ariel, the first mission dedicated to study the nature, formation and evolution of exoplanets.

– Ariel has passed major feasibility reviews and has been formally adopted into the program of future missions for implementation.
– It will survey about 1000 planets outside our solar system during its lifetime.
– Ariel will unveil the nature, formation and evolution of a large and assorted sample of planets around different types of stars in our galaxy.

To continue reading the full press release, follow this link:
The European Space Agency formally adopts Ariel, the exoplanet explorer

 Ariel Press Release (04/2019) – Ariel Data Challenge Series launched to build global community for exoplanet data solutions

Ariel, a mission to make the first large-scale survey of exoplanet atmospheres, has launched a global competition series to find innovative solutions for the interpretation and analysis of exoplanet data. The first Ariel Data Challenge invites professional and amateur data scientists around the world to use Machine Learning (ML) to remove noise from exoplanet observations caused by starspots and by instrumentation.

To continue reading the full press release, follow this link:
Ariel Data Challenge Launch 2019

Ariel Press Release (03/2018) –
Ariel selected as ESA’s next medium-class science mission

Ariel, a mission to answer fundamental questions about how planetary systems form and evolve, has been selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) as its next medium-class science mission, due for launch in 2028. During a 4-year mission, Ariel will observe 1000 planets orbiting distant stars and make the first large-scale survey of the chemistry of exoplanet atmospheres. ESA’s Science Programme Committee announced the selection of Ariel from three candidate missions on 21^st March 2018.

To continue reading the full press release, follow this link:
Ariel Selection Press Release UK 2018

 

Image:
Ariel will be placed in orbit around the Lagrange Point 2 (L2), a gravitational balance point 1.5 million kilometres beyond the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. Image Credit: ESA/STFC RAL Space/UCL/Europlanet-Science Office

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Ariel Press Release (01/2015) –
Mission Announcement

An ambitious European mission is being planned to answer fundamental questions about how planetary systems form and evolve. Ariel will investigate the atmospheres of several hundreds planets orbiting distant stars. It is one of three candidate missions selected last month by the European Space Agency (ESA) for its next medium class science mission, due for launch in 2026. The Ariel mission concept has been developed by a consortium of more than 50 institutes from 12 countries, including UK, France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Belgium, Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Portugal. The mission will be presented today at the Pathways 2015 conference in Bern, Switzerland, by Ariel’s Principal Investigator, Prof Giovanna Tinetti of UCL.

“The essential nature of exoplanets is still something of a mystery to us: despite finding nearly 2000 exoplanets we haven’t yet found any discernible pattern linking the presence, size or orbital parameters of a planet to what its parent star is like,” said Tinetti. “If we are going to answer questions, such as how is the chemistry of a planet linked to the environment in which it forms, or is its birth and evolution driven by its host star, we need to study a statistically large sample of exoplanets. This is what Ariel is designed to do.” Continue reading “Press Releases”

Elliptical primary mirror: 1.1 x 0.7 metres
Mission lifetime: at least 4 years in orbit 
Payload mass / launch mass: ~500 kg / ~ 1500kg
Instrumentation: 3 photometric channels and 3 spectrometers covering continuously from 0.5 to 7.8 microns in wavelength
Launch date: 2029
Destination: Sun – Earth Lagrange Point 2 (L2)
Launch vehicle: Ariane 6-2. Launch shared with Comet Interceptor.

The Ariel mission payload is developed by a consortium of more than 50 institutes from 16 ESA countries – which include the UK, France, Italy, Poland, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, Hungary, Portugal, Estonia. NASA, JAXA, CSA contributions have been confirmed.

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