SPECULOOS: Searching for Earth-like candidates for biosignature detection with ELTs

The SPECULOOS (Search for habitable Planets EClipsing ULtra-cOOl Stars) project is a ground-based survey designed to detect temperate, Earth-sized planets transiting nearby ultracool dwarfs (UCDs), including late M-dwarfs and brown dwarfs. These low-mass stars offer ideal conditions for transit detection and atmospheric characterization, thanks to their small radii and low luminosities, which result in deeper transits and stronger planet-to-star contrasts. SPECULOOS was inspired by the success of its prototype, the TRAPPIST survey, which discovered the TRAPPIST-1 (SPECULOOS-1) system—seven Earth-sized planets, three of which lie in the habitable zone. Since then, SPECULOOS has discovered new terrestrial planets such as SPECULOOS-2c and SPECULOOS-3b, further enriching the catalog of nearby transiting worlds. These planets are prime targets for atmospheric studies with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and future Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs). In this presentation, we will highlight the latest JWST results on the TRAPPIST-1 system and discuss the prospects and challenges of extending these studies with the next generation of ground-based observatories such as the ELT. We look forward to exploring the capabilities of ELT instrumentation in our pursuit of detecting biosignatures in the most promising SPECULOOS candidates.