Existing Telescopes Could Directly Observe ‘ExoEarths…’ with a Few Tweaks

VLT
The four 8.2-metre Unit Telescopes of the Very Large Telescope at the Paranal Observatory complex. ESO/VLT

One proposal offers a unique method to directly image ExoEarths, or rocky worlds around nearby stars.

It’s the holy grail of modern exoplanet astronomy. As of writing this, the count of known worlds beyond the solar system stands at 6,520. Most of these are ‘hot Jupiters,’ large worlds in tight orbits around their host star. But what we’d really like to get a look at are ‘ExoEarths,’ rocky worlds (hopefully) like our own.

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