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One underappreciated aspect of the current flood of exoplanet discoveries is the technical marvels that enable it. Scientists and engineers must capture and detect minute signals from stars and planets light years away. With the technologies of even a few decades ago, that would have been impossible \u2013 now it seems commonplace. However, there are still some technical hurdles to overcome before finding the \u201choly grail\u201d of exoplanet hunting \u2013 an Earth analog. To help that discussion, a team of researchers led by Bertrand Mennesson at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has released a paper detailing the current experimental and theoretical work around one of the most critical technical aspects of researching exoplanet atmospheres \u2013 starshades.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n In particular, the paper discusses the technical hurdles of one of the most interesting upcoming space technology concepts. The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) was called for as part of NASA\u2019s recent decadal survey. While it is still early in its development cycle, the general outlines of how the HWO will work are evident, even if some technical details aren\u2019t. And those general outlines point to the need for a starshade or coronagraph \u2013 or both.<\/p>\n The paper details the difference between a starshade and a coronagraph. By its definition, a starshade is a filter placed between the primary telescope mirror and the object it is observing. In contrast, a coronagraph is a filter placed between the primary mirror and the telescope\u2019s sensor. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages regarding the data they allow the telescope to collect, but they can also be combined.<\/p>\n \n