Thumbs Up or Down? Validating TESS Exoplanet Candidates

Christopher Mann ( Université de Montréal )

To date, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has discovered over 6000 candidate exoplanets, dubbed TESS Objects of Interest (TOIs). TESS candidates are particularly interesting targets because the mission was designed to discover planets around nearby and bright stars, facilitating detailed follow-up. However, they are prone to false positives that must be individually investigated. I have spearheaded a few projects verifying specific TOIs and I will provide an overview of the involved observations, discoveries, and pitfalls of the process.