Prospects for mid-infrared imaging of rocky exoplanets

The mid-infrared domain offers interesting perspectives for the direct imaging and characterization of rocky exoplanets, thanks to a reduced star/planet flux ratio (a few millions) compared to the visible/near-infrared range (a few billions), and thanks to a wealth of relevant molecular signatures such as water, carbon dioxide, methane, or ozone. Resolving nearby planetary systems in the mid-infrared, and in particular the habitable zone around nearby stars, requires however to use telescopes larger than the current generation of 10-m class telescopes. In this talk, I will review the currently on-going efforts to tackle this challenge. I will first briefly review the NEAR project, which aimed to demonstrate the power of mid-infrared high-contrast imaging on the 8-m Very Large Telescope, targeting our nearest neighbor alpha Centauri. I will then describe the goals and expected performance of METIS, the mid-infrared imager of the future 38-m European Extremely Large Telescope. I will finally discuss the status and perspectives of the LIFE project, a mid-infrared space interferometer dedicated to the study of temperate, rocky exoplanets, preselected within the ESA Voyage 2050 large mission themes.