The Kepler spacecraft, launched on Mar 6, 2009, monitors 150,000+ stars with continuous 30 minute temporal sampling. Kepler's primary science objective is exoplanet detection, with particular focus on terrestrial planets within habitable zones. The 115 square degree field of view is located within the Cygnus-Lyra region and will be continuously monitored throughout the full mission. There is a nominal magnitude range for Kepler science of m_kep = 9−15 for the primary program, although justifiable targets as bright as m_kep ≈ 5 and as faint as m_kep ≈ 20 will be considered for Guest Observer (GO) use. The one instrumental bandpass is broad, from 4,200 to 9,000 Å and the point spread function is approximately 6 arc seconds (FWHM). Photometric precision is 50 parts per million for a m_kep = 12 magnitude G2V star integrating for 30 minutes. With a baseline mission of 3.5 years and an option for an additional 2 year extension, the resulting data archive will provide a unique combination of photometric precision, duration, contiguity and source volume.

The community have opportunities to both develop observing programs and mine this rich data set for astrophysical results that are not included within the primary Kepler Mission. The Kepler Guest Observer Office is dedicated to the service of the broad science community, with a charter to promote the exploitation of Kepler data and broaden the scientific impact of this mission.