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[Music throughout]

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The stars above.

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What secrets do they keep?

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[Narrated by John Rhys-Davies]

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One of our biggest questions
has always been:

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are we alone?

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We've now discovered thousands of planets
beyond our solar system.

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But how many of those distant worlds have
the conditions for life as we know it?

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How many have water vapor,

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a beacon indicating that oceans might be present?

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How many of gases like oxygen and methane,

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possible signs of life itself?

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And of those, which might truly have life?

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After decades of asking, a future NASA telescope

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could bring us the answers.

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The Habitable Worlds Observatory

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is a future mission designed

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in the tradition of the Hubble
and Webb Space Telescopes.

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It will use its unique and sensitive eyes
to see planets like our own,

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hiding in the light of their distant stars.

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Astronomers could then point
this mighty space observatory

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to the most promising planets:

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those that may hold liquid water.

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With the help of its coronagraph instrument,

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which blocks out the dazzling starlight,

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the telescope will look for undiscovered
Earth-sized planets

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in the star's habitable zone,
where liquid water could exist.

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The light from each planet

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will be split into a vibrant spectrum of colors,

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revealing clues to the chemical signatures
we seek.

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From there, we can attempt to discover
if a planet's atmosphere contains water,

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and from there, other signals

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like oxygen or methane.

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Should all these signs align,

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the Habitable Worlds Observatory
would delve deeper

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to reveal other hidden clues of life.

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With further study,

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we could find signs of sprawling oceans

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and rugged continents.

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And if signs of life are revealed,

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keep a watchful eye for changes over time.

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This magnificent observatory

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could discover dozens of worlds
akin to our own

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in its first five years.

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The telescope will gather data on a wide
variety of worlds, 

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placing our own solar system in the context

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within the grand tapestry of existence.

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And the Habitable Worlds Observatory will —

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like the other great cosmic watchers

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Hubble, Chandra, Spitzer, Webb
and soon Roman — 

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 also conduct a wide range

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of revolutionary observations of our cosmos,

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improving our understanding

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of how our universe led

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to potentially habitable worlds.

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Thus, the Habitable Worlds Observatory

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will help us embark on a quest
as grand as any

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to tell the story of life in the cosmos

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and whether or not

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we are alone.

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[Habitable Worlds Observatory]

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[Telling the story of life in the universe]

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[NASA]