Shaping the Italian contribution to HWO

10 Jul 2025, 10:30 → 11 Jul 2025, 16:05 UTC

Rome

Adriano Fontana (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

July 10-11, 2025

Rome- Università La Sapienza

The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is a large (6–10 m mirror diameter) infrared/optical/ultraviolet space telescope designed to revolutionize optical astronomy from the 2040s onward. HWO will be equipped with a comprehensive suite of powerful capabilities for transformational astrophysics discoveries, spanning from our cosmic backyard—the solar system—to the distant universe and everything in between. It will also be the first telescope specifically engineered to search for signs of life on planets orbiting other stars, utilizing a coronagraph of unprecedented capability. HWO is being developed by NASA and will result from extensive international collaboration.

This meeting is organized by INAF and aims to discuss the scientific perspectives enabled by HWO and the role of the Italian community in developing new technologies and defining the scientific requirements.

We invite to present contributed talks highlighting either scientific challenges that can be addressed by HWO, possibly including a description of the ideal instrumentation that would be needed, or on groundbreaking technologies that could be exploited.

It will be possible to follow the workshop remotely, but we warmly invite all interested scientists to attend in person.

 

 

 

Thursday 10 July

Welcome

Exoplanet Science: Exoplanets

1 Decoding the atmospheres of temperate rocky planets in the 2040s

With complementary strategies, two main space missions in the 2040s (WHO and LIFE) are being designed in order to investigate and interpret the atmospheres of temperate, rocky exoplanets - including the search for biological signatures. In this short review I will recap the main science goals, the strategy of both observatories, and the reliance on scientific milestones of the previous decade, such as the exact mechanisms of the rocky-gaseous transition, atmosphere retention over geological times, and the diversity of rocky atmospheres. These earlier goals will be pivotal to put any putative measurement of biomarkers in context.

Speaker: Matteo Brogi (University of Warwick)

2 Demographics of Terrestrial Planetary Systems: Now, and in the HWO Era

I will provide a brief overview of our present knowledge of the demographics of planetary systems with (temperate) terrestrial, rocky planets. I will then outline how convergent multi-technique observational approaches in the coming two decades will help maximizing the scientific return of HWO's primary goal of searching for biosignatures in the atmospheres of tens of potentially habitable Earth-like planets around the nearest solar-type stars.

Speaker: Dr Alessandro Sozzetti (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

3 Synergies between Ariel and the Habitable Worlds Observatory

Speaker: Giuseppina Micela (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

4 TBD

Speaker: Giampaolo Piotto

5 Characterizing planet-host stars: the case of Ariel

The exoplanet characterization follows the axiom: know the star, know the planet. In order to achieve the goal of Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) for the search of other Earths, a precise and accurate knowledge of the properties of their host star is necessary. The NASA Exoplanet Exploration Program has already released a list of ~160 nearby targets identified as the most accessible to survey for potentially habitable exoplanets with HWO.

In this talk, I will present the methodologies and techniques we have applied for the homogeneous characterization of the Ariel mission candidate sample and demonstrate how this expertise can be leveraged to characterize the target list of HWO. Finally, I will highlight upcoming improvements in our techniques particularly by the 2040s in determining stellar atmospheric parameters, chemical abundances, and physical properties (mass, radius, age) and discuss their impact on the planetary systems.

Speaker: Maria Tsantaki (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

6 The LIFE Mission - Characterizing other words and searching for life

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 space-based nulling interferometer operating at mid-infrared wavelengths, LIFE will be able to directly detect hundreds of exoplanets - with an expected 30 to 50 of which of size and temperature similar to Earth - and measure their intrinsic thermal emission spectroscopically. The wavelength range and mission design of LIFE offers unique and distinct advantages compared to other future missions and projects. This allows LIFE to search for atmospheric biosignatures in Earth-twin exoplanets, but LIFE can also find atmospheric biosignatures from biospheres that differ significantly from that of Earth in their composition or stellar environment. Also, LIFE has the capabilities to search for imprints of technology in exoplanet atmospheres, so-called technosignatures. This versatility allows LIFE to become the world’s leading mission in the search for life beyond the Solar System. With a target launch no later than 2040, LIFE’s vision and ambition go beyond standard agency-led development processes, motivating us to explore new private-public partnerships.

Speaker: Sascha Quanz (ETH Zurich)

7 Contributed exoplanet 2

12:35 Lunch

HWO: HWO NASA

8 TBD

Speaker: Giada Arney

9 TBD

Speaker: Jason Tumlinson

10 TBD

Speaker: Lee Feinberg (NASA, Goddard)

11 TBD

Speaker: Matt Bolcar (NASA, Goddard))

Stellar Astrophysics: stars

12 Unveiling the star formation mechanism with HWO

Speaker: Alessio Traficante (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

13 Investigating the origin of stars with the Habitable World Observatory

Understanding the processes that lead to star formation is essential for addressing key questions in modern astronomy, from the origin of the Solar System to the evolution of galaxies. While a broad framework for star formation in the Milky Way has been established, several critical aspects remain unresolved. In particular, the influence of the
environment properties, such as stellar density and metallicity, is still not well understood. In this talk, I will highlight these open questions and discuss how the field is expected to evolve over the next two decades. I will also explore the potential contributions of the Habitable Worlds Observatory in advancing our understanding of star formation, and how its capabilities will complement those of
the ELT.

Speaker: Giuseppe Germano Sacco (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

14 Astrometry of resolved stellar populations with MAVIS and HWO

Speaker: Davide Massari (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

15 Tracing Galaxy Evolution with Resolved Stars: The HWO Perspective

In this talk, I will review our current understanding of resolved stellar populations in nearby galaxies, with particular emphasis on the progress enabled by JWST. I will then discuss the advances expected from the ELT, focusing on the unprecedented spatial resolution achievable with the MORFEO-MICADO system. Finally, I will explore future prospects opened by HWO and its potential to push the study of galaxy evolution through resolved stellar populations into new regimes.

Speaker: Francesca Annibali (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

16:40 Coffee break

Extragalactic Astrophysics: extragal

16 TBD

Speaker: Laura Pentericci (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

17 Studying the intergalactic medium with a future space telescope

Speaker: Valentina D'Odorico (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

18 AGN and Galaxy Evolution: Exploring the Final Frontier with HWO

Speaker: Alessandro Marconi (Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Firenze)

19 Shaping the Future of Time-Domain and Multi-Messenger Astronomy with HWO

Speaker: Silvia Piranomonte (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

20 New frontiers in cosmology in view of the Habitable World Observatory

I will present an overview of the frontiers and challenges for cosmology in view of the Habitable World Observatoryervatory

Speaker: Michele Ennio Maria Moresco (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

21 Contributed extragal astrophysics 1

22 Contributed extragal astrophysics 2

23 Contributed extragal astrophysics 3

Friday 11 July

Technology - optics: optics

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

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 star-planet interactions. It will also allow us to resolve narrow UV emission and absorption lines, enabling us to follow the baryon cycle over cosmic time - from galaxies forming stars out of interstellar gas and grains, and planets forming in circumstellar disks, to the various forms of feedback into the interstellar and intergalactic medium - and from active galactic nuclei. The most innovative characteristic of Pollux is its unique spectropolarimetric capability in the UV, which will open a new parameter space. Its very high spectral resolution (~60000 to ~120000) and stability over a very large wavelength range will also be a major asset. We will summarise the main scientific drivers of Pollux and present its current design, technological challenges, and the Pollux consortium organisation.

Speaker: Luca Fossati

25 TBD

Speaker: Giovanni Pareschi (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

26 PSF reconstruction from WFS data and other tools to make your images sharper and deeper

Speaker: Fernando Pedichini (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

27 Pyramid WaveFront Sensors and contactless active mirrors: a research program for high contrast imaging

WaveFront sensing and control is considered an enabling technology for the the next generation space telescopes such as the HWO. We investigated the possible contributions of ground based Adaptive Optics for space telescopes and in particular the pyramid WaveFront Sensor and the concept of a contactless active primary mirror.
The PWFS, largely adopted on ground, is a pupil-conjugated sensor and is extremely sensitive at the low-mid spatial scales. We run a set of numerical simulations with the PWFS measuring the misalignment and phase steps of a JWST-like primary mirror, with natural guide stars in the magnitude range 8 to 14; we estimated a sensitivity far below 1 nm, while sampling at 1s cadence, in presence of photon and detector noise. In view of these results, the PWFS may help reducing the temporal stability requirements on the DM. In add, the PWFS signal may feed an advanced PSF reconstruction algorithm for contrast enhancement.
Concerning active mirrors: based on the technology of the adaptive secondaries (currently in use at LBT, VLT, e.g.), we developed a 40 cm mirror, 18 kg/m2, controlled by 19 voice coil actuators and capacitive position sensors, in a contactless control scheme. The optical surface floats at 300-1000 um from the mechanical support with no mechanical contact; such scheme potentially provides an intrinsic insulation from vibrations (and enhanced stability at no added cost) while reducing dramatically the mechanical spec of the support. The system is currently in the optical lab and we are assessing the rejection of external vibration and disturbances, while studying how to reduce its density to 14 kg/m2

Speaker: Runa Antonio Briguglio Pellegrino (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

28 TBD

Speaker: Marco Landoni (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

29 R&D for space-based High-Contrast Imaging in Europe​

In March 2024, a group of European researchers working on high-contrast imaging (HCI) for exoplanet research organized the first “R&D for Space-Based HCI in Europe” workshop at the Paris Observatory. A second edition was held in May 2025 in Heidelberg. Acknowledging Europe’s long-standing contributions to HCI, the main goal of the workshop was to foster collaboration and provide an overview of ongoing activities and cutting-edge projects in the field across Europe.
This contribution aims to report on the key topics, discussions, and insights that emerged during both workshops.

Speaker: Daniele Vassallo (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

30 Contributed talk 1

10:45 Coffee break

Technology - detectors and instruments: detectors

31 High Dynamic Range Photon-Counting UV Detectors

We present the development and expected performance of an innovative photon-counting detector for far-ultraviolet, designed to overcome the dynamic range and lifetime limitations of traditional Microchannel Plate (MCP) based systems. The detector pairs new-generation MCPs, with ALD passivation, with custom readout electronics designed to maximize their potential.

Speaker: Michela Clelia Angela Uslenghi (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

32 CUBES and ANDES: ground-based technological enablers for the HWO

Speaker: Paolo Di Marcantonio (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

33 MAVIS: sharper than JWST, deeper than HST

MAVIS (MCAO Assisted Visible Imager and Spectrograph) is a new facility instrument for the ESO VLT being built by an Australian (Astralis - lead), Italian (INAF) and French (LAM) consortium. MAVIS pushes the frontier of new instrument technologies to provide, for the first time, wide-field, diffraction-limited angular resolution at visible wavelengths. Enhancing the VLT Adaptive Optics Facility, MAVIS will use multi-conjugate adaptive optics (MCAO) to feed a 4k × 4k imager covering 30 × 30 arcseconds, as well as a powerful Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS). Angular resolution down to 18 milliarcseconds will be achieved at 550 nm (V band), making MAVIS a powerful complement to infrared-optimised facilities like JWST and ELT. The IFS will provide four spectral modes, with resolutions from 4,000 to 15,000 between 370-935 nm. This enables a wide variety of science cases, spanning themes that include the emergence of the Hubble sequence; resolving the contents of nearby galaxies; star clusters over cosmic time; and the birth, life, and death of stars and their planets. MAVIS builds on the success of MUSE Narrow Field Mode, extending to bluer wavelengths and higher spectral resolution (complementing BlueMUSE), larger field size and angular resolution for imaging capabilities, and dramatically higher AO-corrected sky coverage, including most of the sky. I will present an update on the MAVIS project and science, highlighting its complementarity to the suite of ESO capabilities and space facilities in the coming decade.

Speaker: Giovanni Cresci (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

34 TBD

Speaker: Dr Silvano Fineschi (Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF))

35 Contributed talk

36 Contributed talk

12:50 Lunch

Technology - detectors and instruments: instruments

37 Contributed talk

38 Contributed talk

39 Contributed talk

Round table: discussion