The ARIEL Space Mission

Abstract

ARIEL, the Atmospheric Remote-Sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey, has been selected to be the next ESA M4 space misson. From launch in 2028 and during its 4 years of operation, ARIEL will perform a spectroscopic survey of the atmospheres of about 1 000 transiting planets orbiting stars other than our Sun. ARIEL will provide the scientific community the first spectroscopic survey of a statistically significant sample of exoplanet atmospheres, covering the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum spanning from the visible to the mid-IR. ARIEL will allow us to answer questions about the true nature of these far away worlds, their atmospheric and physical conditions, and their formation and evolutionary histories.