Project Blue: небольшой космический телескоп для поиска экзопланет в системе Альфа Центавра

сможет обнаружить наличие экзопланет размером от 0,5 до 1,5 диаметров Земли

Сайт проекта — http://www.projectblue.org/the-mission/

О телескопе:

Project Blue will place a state-of-the-art exoplanet imaging telescope into orbit. The instrument will be equipped with advanced high contrast imaging technologies embedded in a coronagraph with a deformable mirror, multi-star wavefront control, and specialized post-processing techniques. Together they can efficiently suppress the light from both stars (Alpha Centauri A and B) separately, thus allowing any planets to be seen. Our team has extensive experience developing and testing these technologies — now it’s time to get them into space!

Планы:

2016: Form partnerships & initiate fundraising
2017: Preliminary design, proof of concept prototypes, integration, and initial instrument prototype
2018: Final mission design, fabrication, assembly & testing; incorporate lessons learned from related balloon-borne flights
2019: Final construction and launch to low-Earth orbit
2020 — 2022: Science and mission operations

Команда: http://www.projectblue.org/the-team
Статьи: https://techcrunch.com/2016/10/10/project-blue-aims-to-snap-the-first-picture-of-an-exoplanet-in-alpha-centauri/ http://www.space.com/34340-project-blue-alpha-centauri-earthlike-alien-planet.html

Точно известно, что у α Центавра В есть планета, которая, впрочем, расположена очень близко к звезде