The Mid-Infrared ELT Imager and Spectrograph (METIS) will be one of only three 1^st-generation science instruments on the 39m Extremely Large Telescope (ELT).METIS will provide diffraction-limited imaging and medium resolution slit-spectroscopy from 3-13 microns (L, M, and N bands), as well as high resolution (R≈100,000) integral field spectroscopy from 2.9-5.3 microns.Both imaging and IFU spectroscopy can be combined with coronagraphic techniques.After the final design reviews of the optics (2021) and the entire system (2022), most hardware procurements have started.In this paper we present an overview of the status of the various ongoing activities.Many hardware components are already in hand, and the manufacturing is in full swing in order to start the assembly and testing of the subsystems in 2024 toward first light at the telescope in 2028/29.This rather brief paper only provides an overview of the project status.For more information, we refer to the detailed instrument paper which will be published soon.

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The Mid-infrared ELT Imager and Spectrograph (METIS) will provide the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) with a unique window to the thermal- and mid-infrared (3–13 µm). Its single-conjugate adaptive optics (SCAO) system will enable high contrast imaging and integral field unit (IFU) spectroscopy (R ~ 100 000) at the diffraction limit of the ELT. This article describes the science drivers, conceptual design, observing modes, and expected performance of METIS.@en

METIS is one the first three instruments on the E-ELT. Apart from diffraction limited imaging, METIS will provide coronagraphy and medium resolution slit spectroscopy over the 3 - 19μm range, as well as high resolution (R ∼ 100,000) integral field spectroscopy from 2.9 - 5.3μm, including a mode with extended instantaneous wavelength coverage. The unique combination of these observing capabilities, makes METIS the ideal instrument for the study of circumstellar disks and exoplanets, among many other science areas. In this paper we provide an update of the relevant science drivers, the METIS observing modes, the status of the simulator and the data analysis. We discuss the preliminary design of the optical system, which is driven by the need to calibrate observations at thermal IR wavelengths on a six-mirror ELT. We present the expected adaptive optics performance and the measures taken to enable high contrast imaging. We describe the opto-mechanical system, the location of METIS on the Nasmyth instrument platform, and conclude with an update on critical subsystem components, such as the immersed grating and the focal plane detectors. In summary, the work on METIS has taken off well and is on track for first light in 2025.

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