Jul 24, 2026 05:40 PM
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1137274
INTRO: UK astronomers are a step closer to playing a leading role in NASA's search for alien life in the coming decades, after receiving £3million to continue developing one of the core instruments of the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO). The "exciting" mission – the US space agency's next flagship space telescope after the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope – is expected to launch in the 2040s.
The UK-led plans follow a series of instrument studies funded by the UK Space Agency (UKSA), which have been shared with NASA and are helping to shape the mission as it moves into its next phase of development.
"The Habitable Worlds Observatory is one of the most exciting space science missions now under development," said Professor Martin Barstow, of the University of Leicester, who is playing a leading role in the UK's involvement and gave an update on the mission at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting in Birmingham.
"It will tackle one of the biggest questions in science: are we alone in the universe? By searching for Earth-like planets and studying their atmospheres, the HWO will look for evidence of life beyond our Solar System."
Seen from a distance, a planet like Earth would be a faint dot right next to a blinding sun, 10 billion times brighter. To image this moth next to a flamethrower, HWO's 8 metre mirror must be held stable to within the width of an atom, and the light from the sun blocked out.
Professor Barstow added: "The UK has a long history of making major contributions to NASA's flagship observatories, from Hubble to the James Webb Space Telescope, and we are now in a strong position to lead the development of one of HWO's core scientific instruments."
Vincent Van Eylen, Associate Professor in Exoplanets at UCL's Mullard Space Science Laboratory, called HWO "one of the most exciting missions of my lifetime". He added: "It will be the first telescope designed to search for evidence of life on distant planets. Imagine for a moment it finds evidence of life out there. What an achievement that would be! It's fantastic that the UK Space Agency is ensuring that UK scientists and engineers will have a leading role in this exciting project."
The UK is leading on the development of HWO's High Resolution Imager (HRI) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS), which are expected to be core instruments on the telescope.
Researchers have just been awarded a new £3million funding boost from the UKSA to ramp up their efforts and develop the necessary technologies to make the instrument a reality. This latest development builds on the previous studies, but significantly expands the scale.
Dr Caroline Harper, Head of Space Science at the UK Space Agency, said: "This UK Space Agency funding is a significant step forward in securing the UK's place at the heart of one of the most ambitious space science missions ever conceived.
"Habitable Worlds Observatory is being designed to answer whether we are alone in the universe and will require technological advances as well as scientific breakthroughs. That's why we're backing UK scientists and engineers to lead one of its core instruments." (MORE - no ads)
INTRO: UK astronomers are a step closer to playing a leading role in NASA's search for alien life in the coming decades, after receiving £3million to continue developing one of the core instruments of the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO). The "exciting" mission – the US space agency's next flagship space telescope after the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope – is expected to launch in the 2040s.
The UK-led plans follow a series of instrument studies funded by the UK Space Agency (UKSA), which have been shared with NASA and are helping to shape the mission as it moves into its next phase of development.
"The Habitable Worlds Observatory is one of the most exciting space science missions now under development," said Professor Martin Barstow, of the University of Leicester, who is playing a leading role in the UK's involvement and gave an update on the mission at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting in Birmingham.
"It will tackle one of the biggest questions in science: are we alone in the universe? By searching for Earth-like planets and studying their atmospheres, the HWO will look for evidence of life beyond our Solar System."
Seen from a distance, a planet like Earth would be a faint dot right next to a blinding sun, 10 billion times brighter. To image this moth next to a flamethrower, HWO's 8 metre mirror must be held stable to within the width of an atom, and the light from the sun blocked out.
Professor Barstow added: "The UK has a long history of making major contributions to NASA's flagship observatories, from Hubble to the James Webb Space Telescope, and we are now in a strong position to lead the development of one of HWO's core scientific instruments."
Vincent Van Eylen, Associate Professor in Exoplanets at UCL's Mullard Space Science Laboratory, called HWO "one of the most exciting missions of my lifetime". He added: "It will be the first telescope designed to search for evidence of life on distant planets. Imagine for a moment it finds evidence of life out there. What an achievement that would be! It's fantastic that the UK Space Agency is ensuring that UK scientists and engineers will have a leading role in this exciting project."
The UK is leading on the development of HWO's High Resolution Imager (HRI) and Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS), which are expected to be core instruments on the telescope.
Researchers have just been awarded a new £3million funding boost from the UKSA to ramp up their efforts and develop the necessary technologies to make the instrument a reality. This latest development builds on the previous studies, but significantly expands the scale.
Dr Caroline Harper, Head of Space Science at the UK Space Agency, said: "This UK Space Agency funding is a significant step forward in securing the UK's place at the heart of one of the most ambitious space science missions ever conceived.
"Habitable Worlds Observatory is being designed to answer whether we are alone in the universe and will require technological advances as well as scientific breakthroughs. That's why we're backing UK scientists and engineers to lead one of its core instruments." (MORE - no ads)