ESO Announcements

Massimo Tarenghi Awarded Grand Cross by the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:00:00 +0200

The former ESO representative in Chile, Massimo Tarenghi, was awarded the Grand Cross, highest rank of the Bernardo O'Higgins Order, by the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a ceremony in Santiago on 10 May 2013.

In the presence of government officials and representatives of the diplomatic corps, the Foreign Minister, Alfredo Moreno, granted Tarenghi this decoration in recognition of his 35 years devoted to the construction of major telescopes in Chile.

"Massimo is not only a scientist, an outstanding professional and an entrepreneur, but also a friend who, over the years, has become a great promoter of our country. With his energy, experience and hard work, he has contributed to the process of making public the virtues of Chile," said Minister Moreno during the event.

Since 1979, Tarenghi has been in charge of the construction and operation of several of the most important ESO telescopes in Chile, including the New Technology Telescope (NTT) at La Silla, the Very Large Telescope (VLT) on Cerro Paranal, and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) on the Chajnantor Plateau. ALMA was inaugurated on 13 March 2013 during an official ceremony.

"I'd like to thank you for this great honour that has been bestowed upon me and also express my gratitude to all the people who have made me feel so close to this country," said Massimo Tarenghi at the award ceremony.

In October 2012, the Chilean Senate had granted Chilean nationality by special grace to Massimo Tarenghi, in recognition of his great contributions to the development of astronomy in Chile (see ann12079).

Challenges in Communication of Astronomy and Space Exploration

Mon, 13 May 2013 12:00:00 +0200

The 2013 Communicating Astronomy with the Public (CAP) Conference will take place in Warsaw, Poland, between 14–18 October. Public information officers, communicators, journalists and formal and informal educators are invited to debate the latest challenges in communicating astronomy and share their success stories and lessons learnt.

CAP2013 will expand the discussion topics to include space exploration, space tourism and commercial involvement in space-related activities. As the venue is a modern planetarium, special attention will also be given to audiovisual and multimedia communications in the widest sense. Popular topics from previous CAP conferences continue to be on the agenda.

Interested participants are invited to submit abstracts before 21 June 2013 under the following major themes:

Social media for astronomy outreach
Media relations
Multimedia communication, including tools and techniques
Crowdsourcing and citizen science projects
Alternative ways for communicating astronomy with the public
Using astronomy outreach to thrill children with science and technology
Evaluation, impact and monitoring of outreach projects
Support for science policy-makers
Social impact of astronomy communication
Astronomy communication in the developing world
Communicating Astronomy with the Public in the context of the IAU Strategic Plan
CAP community involvement in International Year of Light 2015

Abstract submission can be done here. Early bird registration — 300 € (including conference dinner) — will be available until 21 June 2013. Students and other participants seeking support are invited to send a motivation letter with the subject “CAP2013 Support” to support@cap2013.pl. More information, including important dates, accommodation and conference venue can be found on the conference website.

The meeting is organised by the IAU Commission 55: Communicating Astronomy with the Public, in cooperation with the Warsaw University of Technology (Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering) and the Copernicus Science Centre.

ESO Astronomy Camp for Secondary School Students

Mon, 13 May 2013 12:00:00 +0200

The European Southern Observatory (ESO) and its Science Outreach Network is collaborating with the science communication event organiser Sterrenlab to arrange the first ESO Astronomy Camp. The camp will take place from 26-31 December 2013 at the Astronomical Observatory of the Aosta Valley, located in Saint-Barthelemy, Nus, Italy. Several partners, including ESO, are providing for a total of, so far, five bursaries that will be awarded to the winning applicants.

The camp will explore the theme of the visible and the invisible Universe through lectures, hands-on activities, and nighttime observations with the telescopes and instruments at the observatory. Social activities, winter sports, and excursions will contribute to making the camp a memorable experience for the participants. ESO will be responsible for the scientific programme for the ESO Astronomy Camp, and will, together with other partners, provide lecturers and material.

Sterrenlab specialises in the organisation of international science camps for children and teenagers, and offers a variety of services in consultancy, and in the design, and implementation of projects and events in the areas of science education and communication.

The camp will be available for a maximum of 55 secondary school students aged between 16 and 18 from the ESO Member States and ESO Science Outreach Network countries. Students wishing to apply should fill out the form on the Camp website before 15 October 2013. The selection of the candidates will take place on 31 October 2013. Final confirmation from the participants is due by 8 November 2013. The selection criteria and other instructions for participation are given on the Camp website.

The registration fee of 480 euros covers full board accommodation at the hostel of Saint Barthelemy, supervision by professional staff, all astronomical and leisure activities, materials, excursions, internal transport, and insurance. Bus transport between the observatory and the airport of Milan Malpensa will be provided.

The applicant with the best entry will win a free trip sponsored by ESO. This bursary will cover the complete cost of the camp and transport to the camp, and will go to the best application from a student residing in one of ESO’s Member States. Four national partners are also providing free Camp registrations to the best applications from a student residing in their respective countries (but not travel funding):

Italy: Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica and University of Milan
Poland: Polish Astronomical Society and Urania — Postępy Astronomii and Urząd Marszałkowski Województwa Kujawsko-Pomorskiego
Spain: Sociedad Española de Astronomía
Switzerland: Université de Gèneve

The ESO Astronomy Camp has so far been endorsed by the following institutions:

Austrian Planetarium Society
Planétarium de l'Observatorire Royal de Belgique
Tähtitieteellinen yhdistys Ursa (Ursa Astronomical Association)
Haus der Astronomie
Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica
Società Astronomica Italiana
University of Milan – COSMO group
Netherlands Research School for Astronomy (NOVA)
Polish Astronomical Society
Urania — Postępy Astronomii
Astronomical Observatory of the University of Coimbra
Observatorio Astronómico — Universidad de Valencia
Sociedad Española de Astronomía
Onsala Space Observatory
University of Geneva
University of Cag — Space Observation & Research Centre
Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network
UK National STEM Centre

Follow the Camp website for updates.

Portugal to Participate in the E-ELT

Tue, 07 May 2013 17:30:00 +0200

Representatives of the Portuguese government have confirmed today that their country will join the list of participants in the ESO European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) programme. Thirteen ESO Member States have now confirmed their full participation in what will be the leading project in ground-based astronomy in future decades.

Portugal joined ESO in June 2000 and its membership was ratified by the Portuguese Parliament in May 2001. Portugal’s additional contribution to the E-ELT is valued at a total of about 5.1 million euros over the ten years of construction.

“I am thrilled to see yet another step towards making the E-ELT project reality,” says Tim de Zeeuw, ESO’s Director General, “With this important decision by Minister Crato, Portugal joins the list of Member States that will lead the advancement of ground-based astronomy in future decades. This decision will significantly benefit Portuguese astronomers, instrument builders and industry.”

The E-ELT is considered to be one of the highest priorities in ground-based astronomy in Europe and one of ESO’s main projects for the upcoming decades. It is expected to allow astronomers to make great advances in astrophysical knowledge, through detailed studies of the first objects in the Universe, planets orbiting other stars, supermassive black holes, and the nature and distribution of the dark matter and dark energy that dominate the Universe.

The construction of the E-ELT is scheduled to begin in late 2013, with first light expected about ten years later.

Start Receiving ESO News in Your Language

Tue, 07 May 2013 17:00:00 +0200

Present and future subscribers to ESO News can now receive our weekly newsletter in their native language. Current subscribers are invited to visit their Subscription Preferences, which can be found as highlighted in the images above, and choose a preferred language. New subscribers can choose their favourite language when they sign up.

We appreciate that some languages are officially spoken in more than one country. Therefore, subscribers will find an indication of both language and country in these cases. For example, in the preferred language drop-down menu subscribers will find the options: German, German/Austria, German/Belgium and German/Switzerland. We recommend taking the country into account as well, because translated newsletters may also contain additional local announcements and events that are relevant for only one country.

To see previous editions of translated newsletters for your country, check out the links below. Names of countries are available in official language(s):

Österreich, België—Belgique—Belgien, Brasil, Česko, Danmark, Suomi, France, Deutschland, Ísland, Italia, Nederland, Norge , Polska, Portugal,Россия, España, Sverige, Schweiz—Suisse—Svizzera, Türkiye, Україна.

Translations are made available thanks to the essential work of two of our networks: ESO Science Outreach Network representatives and the volunteer translators — an open network where we always welcome new members. Being a volunteer-driven initiative, our newsletters might sometimes have items in English if a translation is not available at the time of release. We kindly ask our subscribers for their understanding and hope that you will enjoy receiving our latest science news and the breathtaking views the Universe offers us.

ALMA Compact Array Completed and Named After Japanese Astronomer

Tue, 07 May 2013 16:00:00 +0200

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has reached another milestone with the delivery of the last antenna forming the Atacama Compact Array (ACA) to the ALMA high site. The ACA is a subset of 16 closely separated antennas that will greatly improve ALMA’s ability to study celestial objects with a large angular size, such as molecular clouds and nearby galaxies.

The 16 antennas forming the Atacama Compact Array, four 12-metre antennas and twelve 7-metre antennas, were produced and delivered by Japan. Japan’s participation in ALMA also includes some of the ultra-cooled radio receivers installed in the 66 ALMA antennas and the ACA correlator, a powerful special-purpose computer that combines the signals from the ACA antennas.

ALMA was inaugurated on 13 March 2013 during an official ceremony. However, it had already started science operations in September 2011, when a reduced set of antennas was made available for observations. Astronomers worldwide rushed to submit their proposals and, even with the limited capabilities of the partial array, the scientific results obtained from these observations have already provided significant advances in our knowledge of the Universe, in fields such as planetary and star formation and in astrochemistry.

Named Morita Array after Japanese Astronomer

In March 2013, it was decided to officially name the Atacama Compact Array the Morita Array after Professor Koh-ichiro Morita, a member of the Japanese ALMA team and designer of the ACA, who suddenly passed away on 7 May 2012 in Santiago. This is the first time that a telescope has been named after a Japanese astronomer.

More information

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an international astronomy facility, is a partnership of Europe, North America and East Asia in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. ALMA is funded in Europe by the European Southern Observatory (ESO), in North America by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) in cooperation with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the National Science Council of Taiwan (NSC) and in East Asia by the National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) of Japan in cooperation with the Academia Sinica (AS) in Taiwan. ALMA construction and operations are led on behalf of Europe by ESO, on behalf of North America by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), which is managed by Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI) and on behalf of East Asia by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). The Joint ALMA Observatory (JAO) provides the unified leadership and management of the construction, commissioning and operation of ALMA.

Café & Kosmos 7 May 2013

Fri, 03 May 2013 10:55:00 +0200

With Dr Iris Abt (Max Planck Institute for Physics)

The discovery of Jupiter's moons by Galileo Galilei is an example of how one single observation can fundamentally change our view of the world. Galileo's small telescope has now been replaced by complex equipment, some located in special laboratories, others deep underground, and some on remote mountaintops. The construction and operation of such installations require armies of physicists, engineers and technicians. They are waiting for rare decays, or hard-to-detect signals from space. Even today, a single observation could still challenge our understanding of matter, or even of the whole universe. No one knows what we shall see — or whether we shall see it: dark matter, antiparticles, neutrino messengers from distant galaxies...

Dr Iris Abt (Max Planck Institute for Physics) will give an insight into, and discuss, our new observation methods with the guests of the next Café & Kosmos, on Tuesday 7 May 2013.

Note that Café & Kosmos events take place in German.

What: Observing the Universe with the Tools of 21st Century Physics
When: Tuesday, 7 May 2013, 19:00 until approximately 20:30
Where: Vereinsheim, Occamstr. 8, 80802 München, near Münchner Freiheit

Admission is free.

ASTRONET Workshop on Astronomy Education and Public Outreach

Thu, 02 May 2013 11:00:00 +0200

On 17 and 18 June 2013 a workshop entitled Astronomy Education & Public Outreach: the European perspective will take place. It is organised by the ASTRONET Task 5.3 Working Group, made up of representatives from several European scientific organisations and chaired by ESO.

The workshop’s main objective is to evaluate the European perspective on astronomy education and public outreach (EPO), in order to enable the definition of European priorities concerning this topic. ASTRONET Working Group members as well as international experts on astronomy education and public outreach will discuss which astronomy education and public outreach activities need support at the European level, and how the European Union can help to leverage national resources and share best practices as well as educational materials. Abstracts can be submitted up to 31 May, and registration is open until 10 June 2013.

ASTRONET was created in 2005 as a consortium of the largest funding agencies for astronomy in Europe with the objective of coordinating the strategic planning of European astronomy. It includes both the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and the European Space Agency (ESA). An important part of ASTRONET is the coordination for education, public outreach and training across the EU.

The workshop will be hosted by the Haus der Astronomie (House of Astronomy), a centre for astronomy education and outreach operated by the Max Planck Society on the Königstuhl hill close to Heidelberg, Germany.

More information about this workshop can be found at the event’s website.

Danish Industry Day at ESO

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:00:00 +0200

On 16 May 2013, ESO will host an industry event for a Danish business delegation at its headquarters in Garching bei München, Germany. This meeting will provide representatives of Danish companies and institutions with information about ESO and the potential opportunities that are available to take part in ESO’s industrial activities.

Modern astronomical telescopes and instruments are composed of many elements, which have to be designed by engineers and scientists, and are produced by scientific and technological companies and institutes. ESO operates some of the most powerful ground-based telescopes in the world, and will start constructing the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) in the near future — tasks that are only possible with the support of a strong network of external partners in industry. This could offer new opportunities for Danish enterprises and institutes to cooperate, bid for contracts and develop the innovative technology needed.

On 12 April 2013 representatives of Denmark confirmed that their country will participate in the E-ELT programme.

Since 2005, ESO has awarded contracts worldwide totalling more than 600 million euros, the vast majority of which have been placed with companies in the ESO Member States and Chile, forging many strong international relationships with private partners in order to secure the necessary technical expertise.

During this meeting, ESO Director General Tim de Zeeuw will introduce representatives of Danish companies to the benefits of a working relationship with ESO. The Danish companies will have the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the technological requirements of the organisation, as well as its procurement procedures. There will also be time reserved for one-on-one meetings between representatives of ESO and Danish companies.

This industry day is being organised by the Danish Big Science Secretariat, together with ESO.

ESOcast 56: Gentle Giants in the Desert

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 15:00:00 +0200

For our newest ESOcast, we pose this puzzle: how do you move a 100-tonne giant ALMA antenna 30 kilometres up onto the oxygen-starved Chajnantor Plateau, 5000 metres above sea level and finish the job with millimetre precision?

Thankfully we have Otto and Lore, the cutting-edge ALMA transporters. The numbers are staggering: 20 metres long, 10 metres wide, weighing 130 tonnes each, housing two blistering 700-horsepower engines and capable of reaching 20 kilometres/hour; Otto and Lore are moving megastructures.

More than just gigantic workhorses, Otto and Lore are also triumphs of precision — gently moving parts of the world’s largest astronomical project into place to a hair’s breadth precision.

To watch these gentle giants in action, follow the link to ESOcast 56.

More Information

The ESOcast is a video podcast series dedicated to bringing you the latest news and research from ESO — the European Southern Observatory.

Subscribe to our video podcast now to keep up with the latest news from ESO: the ESOcast is available via iTunes in HD and SD. It’s also available on YouTube, Vimeo and dotSUB and is offered for download in several formats including HD.