NASA's newest planet-hunting spacecraft poised for launch

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - APRIL 16, 2017 — NASA's newest planet-hunting spacecraft is poised for a Monday evening launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

In this image released by SpaceX, NASA' s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (Tess) sits atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at Space Launch Complex 40, Monday, April 16, 2018, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. NASA’s newest planet-hunting spacecraft is poised for a Monday evening launch. The Tess satellite will survey almost the entire sky, staring at the brightest, closest stars in an effort to find any planets that might be encircling them.SpaceX via APThe Tess satellite will scan almost the entire sky, staring at the brightest, closest stars in an effort to find any planets that might be encircling them. These mysterious worlds beyond our solar system, called exoplanets, could harbor life.

Scientists expect Tess to discover thousands of rocky and icy planets and gas giants, maybe even water worlds and places defying imagination — possibly even a twin Earth. Bigger and more powerful observatories of the future will scrutinize these prime candidates for potential signs of life.

This image made available by NASA shows an illustration of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). Scheduled for an April 2018 launch, the spacecraft will prowl for planets around the closest, brightest stars. These newfound worlds eventually will become prime targets for future telescopes looking to tease out any signs of life.NASA via APA SpaceX rocket is scheduled to blast off with Tess at 6:32 p.m. The name Tess is short for Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite.