telescope Archives

Sky plot of nine cPIC targets that are present in all stellar reference samples. Their PIC names are indicated with labels. -- astro-ph.IM

Astronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Missions & Hardware, PLATO, Status Report

Planet Finder PLATO Input Catalogs For Technical Calibration And Fine Guidance

by Keith CowingApril 6, 2026April 27, 2026

A few weeks after launch, the PLATO spacecraft is expected to start its payload commissioning, which will be completed within the first three months of the mission. This phase includes […]

This illustration shows an ultra-hot Jupiter orbiting a blue-white A-type star. Credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. Pollard

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

Gemini South Confirms Long-Suspected Link Between the Composition of Exoplanets and Their Host Stars

by Keith CowingApril 4, 2026April 4, 2026

Almost 320 light-years away in the Libra constellation lies WASP-189b, an exoplanet known as an ultra-hot Jupiter (UHJ). UHJs have temperatures high enough to vaporize rock-forming elements like magnesium (Mg), […]

Simultaneously collected raw spectral images in array coordinates from band 2 (left) and band 5 (right) collected during the first practice survey and the first crossing of the Galactic plane. Bands 2 and 5 view the same sky across the DBS. Each image spans the full 3.5◦ FOV of the array with wavelength increasing from bottom to top. The horizontal banding structure observed observed in band 5 corresponds to diffuse Bracket Alpha emission in the Galaxy at 4.05 µm. -- astro-ph.IM

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

The SPHEREx Instrument: Calibration, Testing And Performance Measurements Of The NIR 2 Spectroscopic Surveyor From The Laboratory To In-orbit Commissioning

by Keith CowingApril 2, 2026June 10, 2026

The SPHEREx near-infrared space telescope is an all-sky spectroscopic survey mission launched on March 12th, 2025 UTC.

Artist's conception of an exoplanet reflecting the light from its nearby star. --NASA

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

Optical Vortex Phase Masks for the Detection of Habitable Worlds

by Keith CowingMarch 27, 2026March 27, 2026

A team of NASA researchers is developing new types of optical masks that could help enable the many orders of magnitude of starlight suppression needed for future space observatories to […]

Overview of the 3 m Lazuli Space Observatory and its three instruments, the Widefield Context Camera (WCC), the Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS), and the ExtraSolar Coronagraph (ESC). Main properties and characteristics of the telescope and the instruments are highlighted. -- astro-ph.IM

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Citizen Science / Open Science, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Stellar Cartography

The Lazuli Space Observatory: Architecture & Capabilities

by Keith CowingMarch 26, 2026March 26, 2026

Editor’s note: The Lazuli Space Observatory is part of the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Observatory System, the proposed Lazuli Space Observatory is a 3-meter telescope designed to capture fast-changing cosmic […]

Hubble drifts over Earth after its release on 19 May 2009 by the crew of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. The crew had performed all planned tasks over the course of five spacewalks, making the Servicing Mission 4, the fifth astronaut visit to the Hubble Space Telescope, an unqualified success. Credit: NASA/ESA larger image

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, Status Report

Building A Roadmap For Hubble Science Into The 2030s

by Keith CowingMarch 20, 2026March 20, 2026

Hubble remains an indispensable resource for the astronomy and planetary science community as it approaches the end of its fourth decade in operations. The dynamic astronomical landscape, with facilities with […]

The astrometric and RV signals of Earth analogs orbiting nearby stars are small and below the current state of the art, while the astrometric signals of such planets are positively correlated with their angular separation but anti- correlated with their contrast and RV signal. (left) The amplitude of the astrometric reflex signal versus the radial velocity reflex signal for Earth-mass planets receiving an Earth-like instellation orbiting a sample of nearby stars that are likely to be targets for HWO direct imaging. Credit: Eric Mamajek, used with permission. (right) Contrast versus astrometric signal for a similar sample of stars hosting Earth-like planets. The size of the circles are proportional to the angular separation of the planet and the colors of the circles are proportional to the RV amplitude. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gaia Mission, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Masses of Potentially Habitable Planets Characterized by the Habitable Worlds Observatory

by Keith CowingMarch 16, 2026March 16, 2026

Constraints on the masses of exoplanets directly imaged and characterized by the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) are crucial for categorizing these planets and interpreting their spectra.

This pair of images shows stars observed Feb. 6, 2026, by the SPARCS space telescope simultaneously in the near-ultraviolet, left, and far-ultraviolet, right. The fact that one star is seen in the far-UV while multiple are seen in near-UV offers insights into the temperatures of these stars, with the one visible in both colors being the hottest. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Missions & Hardware, Press Release

SPARCS Spacecraft Delivers Its First Exoplanet Images

by Keith CowingMarch 13, 2026March 13, 2026

The SPARCS cube satellite is ready to begin studying low-mass stars and to reveal details about the habitability of the planets they host.

Pollux instrument concept schematic diagram. -- astro-ph.IM

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

The Ocean Worlds Science Case For The Pollux Spectropolarimeter

by Keith CowingMarch 13, 2026March 13, 2026

Pollux is a candidate European instrument contribution to the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO), designed to advance our understanding of the formation and evolution of cosmic structures in the universe, and […]

Earth’s spectrum over time (right panel), reproduced from [11]. The biosignature gases present change dramatically from epoch to epoch (left panel), producing significantly different spectra. The simultaneous detection of O2 at 0.8 µm demonstrates the presence of life in the modern Earth spectrum shown in the bottom right panel, but for habitable planets without much evidence of oxygenic biosignatures (e.g. Proterozoic and Archean Earth), coverage beyond 0.8 µm will be key to capture H2O, and CH4 features. -- astro-ph.IM

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

The Key To Unlocking Exoplanet Biosignatures: A UK-led IR Spectrograph for the Habitable Worlds Observatory Coronagraph

by Keith CowingMarch 12, 2026March 12, 2026

The detection of life on rocky exoplanets in the habitable zones of nearby stars would be a paradigm-shifting advance, and it is one of the greatest scientific challenges of our […]