Ilmoitukset

7. huhtikuuta 2015: Images of unequalled sharpness that show the almost perfect gravitational Einstein ring of a distant galaxy and the surface of the asteroid Juno have recently been captured by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). These stunning pictures were taken at the end of 2014 as part of ALMA’s Long Baseline Campaign, which has successfully tested and verified the telescope’s ability to see the finest details. This is achieved when the antennas are at their greatest separation: up to 15 kilometres apart. Five targets were selected for study during the ALMA Long Baseline Campaign. They included the protoplanetary disc HL Tauri, the gravitationally lensed galaxy SDP.81, asteroid Juno, the star Mira, and the quasar 3C138. The Astrophysical Journal Letters has published four scientific papers written by representatives of the entire international team of the ALMA Partnership, detailing these observations. SDP.81 is an active star-forming galaxy nearly seen at a time when ...

31. maaliskuuta 2015: It is with great sadness that we have learned of the death of Dr. Klaus Tschira, who passed away unexpectedly today in Heidelberg at the age of 74. Klaus Tschira was a devoted supporter of science education and astronomy, and a close friend of ESO. The foundation he established offered to ESO the donation of a state-of-the-art facility to showcase astronomy to the public: the ESO Supernova Planetarium & Visitor Centre. Work on the building began in early 2015 and it was a privilege to hold a special groundbreaking ceremony on 24 February in the presence of Dr. Tschira. We extend our most sincere condolences to his family and his colleagues.

27. maaliskuuta 2015: On 9 April 2015, ESO will host an industry event for Spanish businesses at its headquarters in Garching, Germany. At the meeting, representatives of interested Spanish companies and institutions will be offered information about ESO, given an introduction to the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) and presented with the potential opportunities that are available to take part in its industrial activities. Astronomy in Spain has a long history, dating as far back as the year 800, to Al-Andalus, or Islamic Iberia, where Indian, Mesopotamian, Persian, Greek and Roman knowledge was all absorbed by early Muslim astronomers, such as Al-Faraghani — whose calculations of the Earth’s circumference were used by Columbus. Astronomy in the country saw a big leap forward more recently, in the late 1970s, when Spain began to develop as a nation invested in modern astronomy. International agreements promoting the use of observatories in the Canary Islands were established ...

26. maaliskuuta 2015: As a scientific institution, ESO provides good infrastructure to deliver cutting-edge astronomical data to astronomers in ESO’s Member States. But, among many other things, ESO also offers almost 10 000 images and 2500 videos for the wider use of the media and public. All of ESO’s images and videos are provided free of charge, and most of our internet traffic results from the distribution of videos — everything from video podcasts to large Ultra HD and planetarium fulldome videos. Some of the bigger files are a few gigabytes in size, and can be up to 400 gigabytes for fulldome planetarium shows. Up to now ESO has only had one server location — at ESO Headquarters in Germany — from where it distributed all content across the globe. However, with about 40% of ESO’s public traffic originating from outside Europe, the disadvantage in terms of speed and the ease with which ...

25. maaliskuuta 2015: In response to information provided by the Meteorological Service of Chile, through its weather alert system, the Meteorological Service of Chile in coordination with the Regional Directorate ONEMI has declared a Red Alert for parts of North-Central Chile due to intense rain storms. As a result we would like to inform that our staff at APEX, ALMA and Paranal are currently without any communication. No injuries have been reported and all staff are safe. Member of families can contact ESO Human Resources for further information: +56 2 24633000. Update as of 25.03.15 20:43 CET: Communications at Paranal are now re-established. Update as of 25.03.15 20:53 CET: Communications at APEX and ALMA are now also re-established.

24. maaliskuuta 2015: The latest edition of ESO's quarterly journal, The Messenger, is now available online. Find out the latest news from ESO on topics ranging from new instruments to the latest science discoveries. Highlights of this edition include: SPHERE Science Verification The Return of the Mid-infrared to the VLT: News from the VISIR Upgrade An Unbiased Near-infrared Interferometric Survey for Hot Exozodiacal Dust An Astrophysical Laboratory: Understanding and Exploiting the Young Massive Cluster Westerlund 1 The GIRAFFE Inner Bulge Survey (GIBS) Download The Messenger in PDF format or visit The Messenger website to subscribe and receive a free printed copy.

19. maaliskuuta 2015: On 23 April 2015, ESO will participate in Germany’s nationwide Girls’ Day activities, in which technical enterprises, universities and research organisations arrange open days for girls, to give female school students an insight into science and technology professions and to encourage more of them to choose such careers in the future. The ESO Girls’ Day will introduce the work of ESO and highlight many of our daily activities, such as astrophysical research, mechanical design, optical integration, operations, development of cutting-edge technology, construction of large structures, and more. The programme comprises an introductory talk, a tour of the main ESO laboratories, and hands-on workshops in the fields of both engineering and astronomy with the opportunity to discuss and ask questions about the topics that have been presented. The students will learn how astronomical instruments are built, integrated and tested in the laboratories. They will also learn how data are obtained and ...

19. maaliskuuta 2015: Your ESO Pictures es una comunidad de Flickr donde cualquiera puede compartir sus fotos relacionadas con ESO y ayudar a crear una galería de imágenes impresionantes. Este ESOcast muestra algunas de las mejores contribuciones a Your ESO Pictures a lo largo de los años. Incluyen imágenes de los observatorios de ESO, los espectaculares paisajes del desierto de Atacama chileno, así como vistas de los cielos nocturnos. Puede suscribirse a ESOcasts en iTunes, recibir futuros episodios en YouTube o seguirnos en Vimeo . Muchos otros episodios de ESOcast también están disponibles . Descubra cómo ver y contribuir con subtítulos para ESOcast en varios idiomas, o traducir este video en dotSUB .

17. maaliskuuta 2015: Following an open call for applications, Ars Electronica in Austria has announced that the winner of the Art & Science residency is the Chilean artist María Ignacia Edwards. The decision was reached by a jury of ten, made up of representatives of Ars Electronica and the seven cultural institutions that make up the Art & Science Network, along with ESO’s Representative in Chile, Fernando Comerón. Edwards’ latticeworks combine delicacy and poise with an intricate spatial awareness, underpinned by mathematical and physical calculations. She will be spending the residency at ESO in Chile and the Ars Electronica Futurelab in Austria. Aesthetics, originality, innovation, a compelling conception, the technique and quality of the presentation, as well as an interest in the ideas of science as expressed by ESO were all criteria under which submissions were evaluated. Fostering interdisciplinary work and intercultural exchange, as well as gaining access to new target audiences, are ...

17. maaliskuuta 2015: ALMA’s Operations Support Facility will open its doors to the public for the first time on 29 March 2015, offering members of the public a rare opportunity to experience what everyday life is like for those working on one of the most advanced pieces of scientific equipment in the world. ALMA is a state-of-the-art telescope to study light from some of the coldest objects in the Universe. This light has wavelengths of around a millimetre, between infrared light and radio waves, and is therefore known as millimetre and submillimetre radiation. ALMA comprises 66 high-precision antennas, spread over distances of up to 16 kilometres. This global collaboration is the largest ground-based astronomical project in existence. Serving as a centre of operations, the ALMA Operations Support Facility is located 28 kilometres from the telescope array itself and accommodates up to 250 workers, including contractors, maintenance staff and astronomers. Visits to the Operations ...

13. maaliskuuta 2015: The latest issue of the free magazine Science in School is now available online and in printed form. This European journal for science teachers offers inspiring articles, fun games and hands-on activities for students in every issue. It aims to promote science teaching by encouraging communication between teachers, scientists and everyone else involved in European science education. Some of the highlights of this issue include: the challenging logistics of lunar exploration. and the psychology of the perfect meal. Teaching activities include: how to demonstrate the different colours of stars with a light bulb, making pH-sensitive inks from vegetables, and how to turn your students into robots using paper cups. Science in School is published by EIROforum, a collaboration between eight European intergovernmental scientific research organisations, of which ESO is a member. The journal addresses science teaching both across Europe and across disciplines: highlighting the best in teaching and cutting-edge research. ...

11. maaliskuuta 2015: ESO invites you to take part in AstroCamera 2015 — an international competition in support of the popularisation of astronomy and astrophotography. The competition is organised by the Hewelianum Centre in Gdańsk, Poland. The winners will receive grants from the organisers. ESO, as one of the sponsors of the event, will award prizes in the form of books and DVDs for the entries that receive honourable mentions from the judges. Initially launched on 28 January 2011, in conjunction with the 400th anniversary of the birth of the 17th century astronomer, Johannes Hevelius, the competition is open to all astronomy and astrophotography enthusiasts. The life and achievements of Hevelius, a renowned observer of the night sky, have been an inspiration for the Hewelianum Centre to make the AstroCamera competition a regular event, with this marking the fifth time it has been held. The competition is organised into the following categories: Category ...

6. maaliskuuta 2015: ESO kutsuu sinut osallistumaan toista kertaa järjestettävään kansainväliseen yömaisema-valokuvakilpailuun tähtivalokuvaajille (Photo Nightscape Awards, PNA). Kilpailun järjestävän Ciel et Espace Photos'n kumppani ESO palkitsee Yömaisema-kategorian voittajan matkalla Paranaliin, VLT-teleskoopin sijaintipaikalle Pohjois-Chileen. Kilpailun kaikille valokuvaajille avoimet kategoriat ovat: Yömaisema, Kaupunki ja Timelapse. PNA:n 9-12 ja 13-17 -vuotiaille tarkoitettuihin Junior-kategorioihin voivat osallistua vain Ranskan kansalaiset. Kilpailuun osallistuvien tulee lähettää valokuvansa tai videonsa lisäksi ilmoittautumislomake, ja alaikäisen ollessa kyseessä myös vanhemien suostumus, sähköpostiosoitteeseen: pna@photonightscapeawards.com. Lisätietoja kilpailun säännöistä löytyy kilpailun verkkosivulta. Ilmoittautumislomake löytyy linkin "Contest" takaa löytyvällä sivulla olevan otsikon "Registration" alta. Ilmoitukset julkaistaan PNA:n Facebook-sivulla. Palkintoseremonia pidetään 7. marraskuuta 2015 Pariisissa, Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie -tiedekeskuksen planetaariossa, missä myös asetetaan näytteille valokuvien ja timelapse-videoiden parhaimmisto. Tärkeitä päivämääriä: Valokuvien täytyy olla otettu välillä 1. tammikuuta 2015 ja 30 syyskuuta 2015. Valokuvien kilpailuun lähettämisen takaraja on 30. syyskuuta 2015. Palkinnot julkistetaan 7. marraskuuta 2015.

6. maaliskuuta 2015: On Thursday 16 April at 16:00 ESO invites students and staff from all institutions on the Forschungscampus Garching to a presentation of the ESO Supernova Planetarium & Visitor Centre which will be held at ESO Headquarters in the Eridanus auditorium. The ESO Supernova is being built at the site of ESO Headquarters and will open in mid-2017. This event will allow students, staff and anyone else at Forschungscampus Garching to hear about the opportunities associated with this project that are relevant to them. The project coordinator, Fabian Reckmann and the head of the public outreach department, Lars Lindberg Christensen, will present the status of the project and explain how other interested institutions and individuals can become part of the project or otherwise support it. The ESO Supernova will be a cutting-edge astronomy centre providing visitors with an immersive experience that will leave them in awe of the Universe we live ...

5. maaliskuuta 2015: ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, has successfully combined its immense collecting area and sensitivity with that of APEX (Atacama Pathfinder Experiment) to create a new, single instrument through a process known as Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). Larger telescopes can make sharper observations, and interferometry allows multiple telescopes to act like a single telescope as large as the separation — or baseline — between them. In VLBI, data from two independent telescopes are combined to form a virtual telescope that spans the geographic distance between them — potentially up to the diameter of the Earth — yielding extraordinary magnifying power. An essential intermediate step is to test the technique on a short baseline. On 13 January 2015 ALMA and the nearby APEX telescope simultaneously studied the quasar 0522-364. This distant galaxy was used for this first-of-its-kind observation due to its remarkable brightness at radio wavelengths. To ensure the telescopes ...

5. maaliskuuta 2015: ESO:n teleskooppien ja instrumenttien havaintoaineistoa käyttävien vertaisarvioitujen tieteellisten artikkelien lukumäärää kartoittanut tutkimus osoittaa, että ESO on edelleen maailman tuotteliain maanpäällinen observatorio. Viime vuonna tähtitieteilijät käyttivät ESO:n laitosten tuottamaa havaintoaineistoa 864 vertaisarvioidussa artikkelissa, mikä on yhtä paljon kuin ennätysvuonna 2012. Vuonna 2014 ESO:n havaintoaineistosta julkaistujen artikkelien määrä oli edelleen hieman suurempi kuin NASA:n ja ESA:n Hubble-avaruusteleskoopin vastaava luku. Lähes 65% kaikista vuoden 2014 ESO:on liittyvistä artikkeleista käytti VLT-teleskoopin (Very Large Telescope) tai VLT:n interferometrin havaintoja. Artikkelilukumäärältään kaikkein tuotteliaimmat VLT:n instrumenteista olivat UVES ja FORS2, joita seurasi VIMOS kolmannella sijalla. Tämän lisäksi myös GIRAFFE:n ja SINFONI:n aineiston käyttö lisääntyi. Paranal:in VISTA-kartoitusteleskooppi (survey=kartoitus?) tuotti havaintoaineistoa vuoteen 2013 verrattuna lähes kaksinkertaista määrää artikkeleita varten. FEROS:in, SOFI:in ja WFI:in aineiston käyttö lisääntyi myös, mutta HARPS on edelleen La Silla:n tuotteliain instrumentti. La Silla tuotti havaintoaineistoa kaikenkaikkiaan yli 260 artikkeliin. Eurooppalaisten käyttämän ALMA-havaintoajan (Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array) tuottamat artikkelit lisääntyivät huomattavasti ja vuoden 2014 lopussa niitä ...

4. maaliskuuta 2015: In January 1954, twelve astronomers from six different European nations congregated in the Senate Room of Leiden University in the Netherlands. The party had met with the intention of discussing a joint venture with the aim of establishing a European observatory under the favourable skies of the southern hemisphere. In the course of the meeting, chaired by Bertil Lindblad of Saltsjöbaden, the twelve astronomers formulated and duly signed their names to a document intended to garner governmental support for their ambitious plan. The subsequently named Leiden Statement laid the groundwork for the ESO Convention of 1962 and so marked the birth of a venture that has since far exceeded even the ambitious vision of those twelve founding astronomers. Today, ESO is the foremost intergovernmental astronomy organisation in Europe, operating some of the most advanced scientific equipment ever built and supported by sixteen countries, with several more having expressed an interest ...

26. helmikuuta 2015: The MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope has given astronomers the best ever three-dimensional view of the deep Universe. Staring at the Hubble Deep Field South region for 27 hours, the new observations reveal the distances, motions and other properties of far more galaxies than ever before in this tiny piece of the sky; extending even beyond Hubble’s reach to reveal previously invisible objects. This ESOcast takes a look at what MUSE found in the Hubble Deep Field South and the way in which it has made life a little easier for astronomers, by compiling thousands of images of these remote galaxies into a three-dimensional stack of images, each at a different wavelength. You can subscribe to the ESOcasts in iTunes, receive future episodes on YouTube or follow us on Vimeo.Many other ESOcast episodes are also available. Find out how to view and contribute subtitles for the ESOcast in ...

24. helmikuuta 2015: A groundbreaking ceremony for the ESO Supernova Planetarium & Visitor Centre took place today at ESO’s Headquarters in Garching, Germany. This event marked the beginning of the main construction phase of the facility. The ESO Supernova will be a magnificent showcase for astronomy for the public. It is made possible by a collaboration between the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS) and ESO. The Klaus Tschira Stiftung (KTS), a German foundation that supports the natural sciences, mathematics and computer science, offered to fully fund the construction and ESO will run the facility. The striking building was designed by the architects Bernhardt + Partner. This new facility will provide visitors with an immersive experience of astronomy and ESO’s scientific results, projects and technological breakthroughs. It will include a fulldome planetarium and more than 2000 square metres of permanent and temporary exhibitions. Further rooms housing conference facilities will also host a variety ...

10. helmikuuta 2015: A team of astronomers and engineers from ESO, the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC) and INAF Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma has achieved first light and successful commissioning of the ESO Wendelstein Laser Guide Star system [1] at the IAC's Observatorio del Teide on Tenerife in Spain. Following an agreement in April 2014 between ESO and the IAC, the required infrastructure for the experiment was built at the observatory. The team carried out the installation and commissioning of the ESO Wendelstein Laser Guide Star Unit laser, the receiver system and the automated observing software. These joint activities are research and development studies to optimise the laser guide star return brightness from the upper atmosphere with special attention being paid to the influence of the geomagnetic field on the performance. The experimental setup uses fibre laser technologies developed at ESO to produce a 20-watt continuous wave ...