![Latitude-longitude maps of column-integrated water clouds (panels a, b and c), outgoing longwave radiation (OLR, panels d, e and f) and albedo at the top of the atmosphere (TOA albedo, panels g, h and i) for Cases 2A, 2B and 2C. The variables are averaged over ∼50 orbits. The dashed white line on the albedo color bar corresponds to the surface albedo.-- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/A-broad.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.EP] VLT/RISTRETTO, ELT/ANDES and ELT/PCS will soon enable atmospheric characterization of non-transiting, small rocky exoplanets orbiting closer than the inner edge of the Habitable Zone around M dwarfs, combining high-contrast […]
RISTRETTO
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Recent Development In High-precision High-fidelity Spectrographs For Exoplanet Research And Characterization
High-precision high-fidelity spectrographs are the most powerful instruments for exoplanets detection and characterization. The sub-m/s radial-velocity precision, required to detect Earth-mass exoplanets, necessitates tackling all the sources of instrumental and […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Proxima Centauri
Conclusive Tests For The RISTRETTO Proxima b Exoplanet Explorer
The RISTRETTO project, dedicated to observing Proxima b –the closest exoplanet to the Solar System — is reaching a new milestone: several key components of this high-precision spectrograph have been […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Proxima Centauri, Status Report
Simulating RISTRETTO: Proxima b Detectability In Reflected Light
The characterization of exoplanet atmospheres is one of the key topics in modern astrophysics. To date, transmission spectroscopy has been the primary method used, but upcoming instruments will lay the […]