Exo-C: A Probe-Scale Space Mission to Directly Image and Spectroscopically Characterize Exoplanetary Systems Using an Internal Coronagraph

"Exo-C" is NASA's first community study of a modest aperture space telescope designed for high contrast observations of exoplanetary systems. The mission will be capable of taking optical spectra of nearby exoplanets in reflected light, searching for previously undetected planets, and imaging structure in a large sample of circumstellar disks. We present the mission/payload design and highlight steps to reduce mission cost/risk relative to previous mission concepts. At the study conclusion in 2015, NASA will evaluate it for potential development at the end of this decade.