Shaping the Italian contribution to HWO

Session

Space missions and instruments

Jul 11, 2025, 9:00 AM

Rome

33. The future of the ESA Science Programme

Luigi Colangeli (ESA)

7/11/25, 9:00 AM

30. The Pollux instrument for HWO: a high-resolution spectropolarimeter from the far-UV to the near-IR

Luca Fossati (Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences)

7/11/25, 9:15 AM

Pollux is a high-resolution spectropolarimeter working from 100 nm to 1.6 microns proposed for HWO by a European consortium. Pollux will allow us to study stellar and (exo)planetary systems, as well as cosmic ecosystems. For example, Pollux will provide new insights on exoplanet formation and evolution, characterisation of the atmospheres and magnetospheres of stars and planets, and...

9. The LIFE Mission - Characterizing other words and searching for life

Sascha Quanz (ETH Zurich)

7/11/25, 9:30 AM

In this talk, I will discuss the Large Interferometer For Exoplanets (LIFE), a space mission project rooted in Europe, which has been gaining significant international support and traction over the last few years. I will summarize the scientific vision for LIFE, provide an overview of ongoing technology development efforts, and give an outlook about the overall development process.

As a...

1. SHARP: an advanced Near-IR spectrograph to unlock the Universe beyond Habitable Worlds

Paolo Saracco (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

7/11/25, 9:45 AM

SHARP is a conceptual study for a near-IR (0.9-2.4 mu) spectrograph designed to exploit the capabilities of future ground-based AO-assisted Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs) and space-based Habitable World Observatory (HWO). The instrument concept is driven by the goal of creating a spectrograph capable of tackling the most important questions in astrophysics and cosmology, from exploring...