Continuing to Advance European High-ContrastImaging R&D towards HWO and LIFE

Continuing to Advance European High-ContrastImaging R&D towards HWO and LIFE | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Short Report Continuing to Advance European High-ContrastImaging R&D towards HWO and LIFE Gael Chauvin, Oscar Carrion-Gonzalez, Iva Laginja, Daniel Dicken, and 19 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9085916/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The European R&D for Space-based High-Contrast Imaging (HCI) II Workshop,held at MPIA in May 2025, advanced Europe’s strategic coordination in supportof future exoplanet-imaging missions such as the Habitable Worlds Observatory(HWO) and the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE) mission. Building onthe first 2024 workshop, this meeting defined concrete priorities across eight technical areas, including wavefront sensing, coronagraphs, post-processing, nullinginterferometry, deformable mirrors, detectors, and telescope design. Discussionsemphasized Europe’s strengths in adaptive optics, ground-based facilities, andinterferometry, while identifying key gaps, particularly the need for a dedicatedEuropean vacuum testbed for high-contrast imaging. The community highlightednear-infrared or UV coronagraphy as a promising domain for European leadership and called for joint development of advanced data reduction algorithms,detectors, and cross-mission coordination with HWO and LIFE. The workshopoutcomes establish a collaborative roadmap to strengthen Europe’s technologi-cal readiness, foster agency partnerships, and ensure its continued leadership inthe next generation of space-based exoplanet exploration. exoplanets high-contrast imaging adaptive optics coronagraphy detectors interferometry Habitable Worlds Observatory Large Interferometer for Exoplanets mission R&D Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers invited by journal 01 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 13 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 13 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 10 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9085916","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Short Report","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":616131316,"identity":"ae9feba1-91ef-4d05-8c9d-0a896a8edfc0","order_by":0,"name":"Gael 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