Astronomers are about to get their first direct look at weather on planets beyond our solar system. Using the James Webb Space Telescope, the Very Large Telescope in Chile, and the upcoming Roman Space Telescope, this team will watch storms churn across the atmospheres of brown dwarfs and young giant exoplanets, then push imaging technology to capture the first direct pictures of Saturn-mass planets and solar-system-age giant worlds. Current exoplanet images are mostly blurry dots. This work will resolve atmospheric structure in three dimensions—measuring how clouds, temperature, and chemistry change over hours and days. It will also fill a critical gap in planet demographics: we have almost no direct images of planets between Jupiter’s mass and Saturn’s mass, or of old giant planets like those in our own solar system. If successful, the project will produce the first direct images of young sub-Jupiter planets and mature giant planets, using Gaia’s 2026 astrometric catalogue to target the brightest candidates for Roman. This is fundamental science—there is no immediate practical application. But the techniques developed here, particularly for high-contrast imaging and coronagraphy, are essential for future missions such as the Habitable Worlds Observatory, which aims to image Earth-like planets. Understanding how giant planets form and evolve also provides the context needed to interpret any future detection of a true Earth twin.
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With the advent of JWST and the launch of Roman in 2027, the next 5 years represent a step-change in our ability to characterize the atmospheres of known directly imaged exoplanets and to directly image lower-mass and cooler exoplanets. We propose a transformational program that will lead from the characterization of currently known directly imaged exoplanets and brown dwarfs to the first direct images of young Saturn mass and solar-system age giant planets. Characterizing the atmospheres of these planets is a key science goal and perfecting the technology and techniques to do so will be critical for the success of future space missions such as the Habitable Worlds Observatory, which will yield the first images of potentially habitable true Earth twins. We propose 3 work packages using VLT, JWST, and Roman: 1) A 3-d view of brown dwarf and giant exoplanet atmospheres: Variability monitoring probes the 3-d time-resolved structure of exoplanet atmospheres. In Cycle 2, JWST will measure spectroscopic variability for 5 L/T transition brown dwarfs and young planetary mass objects (GO 2965, 3548, 3375, 3181, PIs Biller, Vos, Whiteford, Zhou). Coverage of spectral features inaccessible from the ground will lend direct insight into the structure of these atmospheres and the mechanism driving variability. We will also extend variability monitoring to high-contrast companions using the novel VLT/ERIS vAPP coronagraph (2 nights of monitoring acquired in October 2023, PI Sutlieff). 2) Completing the census of young Jupiters: we are conducting a VLT/ERIS + SPHERE survey for young giant planets in overlooked nearby young associations to improve the census of giant planets at the youngest ages (<10 Myr) and determine how companion fraction varies as a function of association age. 3) The First Direct Images of young sub-Jupiter planets and Solar System Age Giant Planets: Several JWST/NIRCam surveys are underway to image down to Saturn mass companions for nearby young stars (GO 4050, PI Carter, co-I Biller, Survey 6005, PI Biller, GO 5835, PI Carter, co-I Biller). Our team is playing a leading role in these surveys. In 2026, Gaia DR4 will provide a treasure trove of ~10000 astrometrically detected planets. Roman may image the brightest of these planets, yielding the first direct images of solar system age giant planets. PI Biller is an ESA-appointed representative to the Roman Coronagraph Community Participation Program. Combining JWST, Gaia, and Roman results will enable the most in-depth study of giant exoplanet demographics to date.
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