Although hundreds of planets orbiting other stars have been discovered in the past 15 years, we cannot yet answer the age-old question of whether any of these planets are capable of sustaining life. However, new NASA technology may change that, by giving us our first look at distant planets that not only are the right size and traveling in the temperate habitable zone of their host star, but also show signs of potential life, such as atmospheric oxygen and liquid water.

Research scientists at NASA’s Ames Research Center are developing new space telescope optics that won’t just detect planets similar to Earth, but actually take photos of them. To take photos, called “direct imaging,” a new technology will be used called phase-induced amplitude apodization (PIAA). In development since 2003, it is a proof-of-concept and technology tested prototype that is a strong candidate for NASA’s upcoming direct imaging exoplanet missions expected to launch in the 2020 decade and beyond.

“By blocking the glare and diffraction from the star, we can start seeing planets that would otherwise be obscured. With this technology, direct imaging confirmation of a habitable zone exoplanet would happen for the first time,” said Ruslan Belikov, a NASA astrophycist and technical lead of the coronagraph technical experiment at Ames.

Read more here.