Detectability of Habitability Signatures on TRAPPIST-1e with Current and Future Ground- and Space-Based Observatories

We are currently existing in the era of exoplanet detection. As discoveries of earth-sized planets continue to occur at increasing rates, efforts will soon begin to shift and focus on characterizing the atmospheres of these planets while searching for signs of life called "biosignatures." Although modern-day observatories are responsible for the advance of the field, the development of future technologies is critical in not only recognizing the presence of molecular species, but distinguishing these species from one another. With many upcoming telescope concepts still in the design phase, synthetic transit spectra for their instruments are calculated using an online radiative-transfer suite that employs an atmospheric configuration derived through the use of a 3-D global climate model (GCM). With a particular interest in rocky planets orbiting M-type stars, theoretical observations highlight the critical instrument parameters necessary for future observatories to detect a modern Earth atmosphere on a potentially habitable exoplanet such as TRAPPIST-1e. After characterizing potential molecular signatures such as methane, water, and oxygen, the number of transits required for the detection of spectral features is then determined for various absorption lines for current/future ground- and space-based observatories.