Performance and early science with the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics project

Abstract

We describe the current performance of the Subaru Coronagraphic Extreme Adaptive Optics (SCExAO) instrument on the Subaru telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii and present early science results for SCExAO coupled with the CHARIS integral field spectrograph. SCExAO now delivers H band Strehl ratios up to ~0.92, extreme AO corrections for optically faint stars, and planet-to-star contrasts rivaling that of GPI and SPHERE. CHARIS yield high signal-to-noise detections and 1.1—2.4 micron spectra of benchmark directly-imaged companions like HR 8799 cde and kappa And b that clarify their atmospheric properties. We show how spectra and astrometry for kappa And b lead to a reevaluation of this object s nature. Finally, we briefly describe plans for a SCExAO-focused direct imaging campaign to directly image and characterize young exoplanets, planet-forming disks, and (later) mature planets in reflected light.