Artist's view of COROT satellite

This artist's view shows the COROT satellite, consisting of a 30-centimetre space telescope to be launched in late 2006.

COROT will use its telescope to monitor closely the changes in a star’s brightness that comes from a planet crossing in front of it.

While it is looking at a star, COROT will also be able to detect ‘starquakes’, acoustical waves generated deep inside a star that send ripples across a star’s surface, altering its brightness. The exact nature of the ripples allows astronomers to calculate the star's precise mass, age and chemical composition.