JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo

On the Road to Finding Other Earths

Apr 28, 2016
This illustration shows the prototype starshade, a giant structure designed to block the glare of stars so that future space telescopes can take pictures of planets. › Play video

NASA is developing new technologies to help astronomers capture the shine of Earth-like worlds and ultimately look for evidence of life elsewhere in our galaxy.

Scientists are getting closer to finding worlds that resemble our own "blue marble" of a planet. NASA's Kepler mission alone has confirmed more than 1,000 planets outside our solar system -- a handful of which are a bit bigger than Earth and orbit in the habitable zones of their stars, where liquid water might exist. Some astronomers think the discovery of Earth's true analogs may be around the corner. What are the next steps to search for life on these potentially habitable worlds?

Scientists and engineers are actively working on two technologies to help with this challenge: the starshade, a giant flower-shaped spacecraft; and coronagraphs, single instruments that fit inside telescopes. Both a starshade and a coronagraph block the light of a star, making it easier for telescopes to pick up the dim light that reflects off planets. This would enable astronomers to take pictures of Earth-like worlds -- and then use other instruments called spectrometers to search the planets' atmospheres for chemical clues about whether life might exist there.

A new JPL "Crazy Engineering" video visits both technologies at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California:

DOWNLOAD VIDEO Crazy Engineering: Starshade/Coronagraph

"Coronagraphs are like visors in your car -- you use them to block the light of the sun so you can see the road," said Nick Siegler, the program chief technologist for NASA's Exoplanet Exploration Program Office at JPL. "Starshades, on the other hand, are separate spacecraft that fly in front of other telescopes, so they are more like driving behind a big truck in front of you to block the light of the sun." Siegler is featured in the Crazy Engineering video.

The starshade would be a large structure about the size of a baseball diamond that deploys in space and flies in front of a space telescope. To view an animation of the starshade unfurling in space, and footage of a prototype at Northrop Grumman's Astro Aerospace in Carpinteria, California, visit:

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2014-089

Coronagraphs, which use tiny masks to block the light of stars from within a telescope, are also currently in development at JPL, as part of NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, or WFIRST, mission, led by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. A feature story describing how these structures might help glean signs of life on other planets is online at:

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2016-117

News Media Contact

Whitney Clavin

626-395-1856

wclavin@caltech.edu

2016-116

Latest News

Climate Change .

Warming Seas Are Accelerating Greenland’s Glacier Retreat

Technology .

NASA’s DC-8 Returns to Flight

Exoplanets .

The 7 Rocky TRAPPIST-1 Planets May Be Made of Similar Stuff

Solar System .

NASA’s Deep Space Network Welcomes a New Dish to the Family

Mars .

6 Things to Know About NASA’s Mars Helicopter on Its Way to Mars

Mars .

NASA to Host Virtual Briefing on February Perseverance Mars Rover Landing

Mars .

NASA InSight’s ‘Mole’ Ends Its Journey on Mars

Stars and Galaxies .

Citizen Scientists Help Create 3D Map of Cosmic Neighborhood

Mars .

Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover to Capture Sounds From the Red Planet

Solar System .

NASA’s Juno Mission Expands Into the Future

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors of JPL
JPL History
Documentary Series
Virtual Tour
Annual Reports
Missions
All
Current
Past
Future
News
All
Earth
Mars
Solar System
Universe
Technology
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Infographics
Engage
JPL and the Community
Lecture Series
Public Tours
Events
Team Competitions
JPL Speakers Bureau
Topics
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Stars and Galaxies
Exoplanets
Technology
JPL Life
For Media
Contacts and Information
Press Kits
More
Asteroid Watch
Robotics at JPL
Subscribe to Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Manager: Veronica McGregor
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Randal Jackson, Naomi Hartono