COROT to be retired

The planet hunting spacecraft COROT has suffered an onboard computer failure and will be decommissioned. The telescope, launched in 2006 by both the French Space Agency (CNES) and the European Space Agency, has lasted more than twice as long as its predicted three year mission. CNES has determined that sending a team to fix the failed craft would cost more than to simply relaunch it, therefore it will be retired by gradually descending its orbit such that its eventually burns up in the earth’s atmosphere. COROT discovered more than thirty new planets. The loss of comparable space observatory Kepler last month inspired tributes and poetry from the devastated astronomical community. http://bit.ly/11SaEHO