Exoplanet discoveries have fascinated the public for over two decades now, yet most detections are actually indirect. This is why direct imaging is a compelling exoplanets detection technique, as not only does it enable us to “see” exoplanetary systems for real, but it allows us to study planet formation, evolution, and composition in-situ.

However, ground-based high-contrast imaging suffers from several hindrances that limit achievable contrast levels, in particular at close angular separation, where it matters the most. Being able to directly image a planet in orbit around its host star is simultaneously fascinating, scientifically invaluable, and still technologically very difficult to this day. The RACE-GO project intends to provide a breakthrough technological contribution ahead of the upcoming class of “extremely large telescopes" (ELTs), in particular the European 39-m ELT with first light foreseen for 2028-29.

The driving motivation for RACE-GO is that one day we can hope to see a “pale blue dot” elsewhere in our galactic neighbourhood (within ~100 pc), maybe then helping to answer questions such as “Are Earth-like planets prevalent elsewhere” or even “Are we alone?"