astronomy

One year of JWST: photodissociation regions, protostars, disks, and planets − an EAS 2023 symposium

Almost 40 years since the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) completed the first, full-sky survey, a succession of infrared space-born facilities (ISO, Spitzer and Herschel) have each pushed the frontiers, helping us to uncover the complex processes which govern the formation of stars and planets. The unique capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) now allow us to study the, otherwise inaccessible, processes governing the formation of stars and planets, to an unprecedented detail. As a space-based cryogenic 6.5m telescope, JWST represents a staggering improvement in sensitivity along with unprecedented spatial resolution across the near and mid-infrared. The first full … Read more »

Ágnes Kóspál’s talk at the French Institute in Budapest

The role of women in science was discussed for the third time at a forum initiated by the French Institute in Budapest, in collaboration with the Women in Science Association (NaTE). At the conference held on March 27, 2023, Hungarian and French female researchers from different scientific fields, including SACCRED PI Ágnes Kóspál, shared their experiences and best practices. Read more in the press release at https://elkh.org/en/news/women-in-science-conference-held-at-the-french-institute-with-the-participation-of-elkh

Press release: Long-lost crystals in the protoplanetary disk of a young star were successfully rediscovered with the James Webb Space Telescope

An international team led by researchers from the Konkoly Observatory at the ELKH Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences (CSFK), used the MIRI spectrograph onboard the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to study the circumstellar disk of the Sun-like young star EX Lupi. Thanks to the exquisite sensitivity of the instrument, they rediscovered long-lost silicate crystals that had formed in an earlier outburst of EX Lupi. In the infrared spectrum of EX Lupi’s disk, they also detected molecules that are essential ingredients for the development of life, among others carbon monoxide and water vapor. The crystals that formed in … Read more »

The 11th VLTI School of Interferometry

The 11th VLTI Interferometry School will be held on 12-17 June 2023 in Budapest. For more information, visit the school’s webpage at https://vltischool2023.konkoly.hu/

Press release: The Gaia Collaboration including CSFK researchers wins 2023 Berkeley Prize for creation of revolutionary new 3D map of the Milky Way

The Konkoly Thege Miklós Astronomical Institute of the ELKH Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences (CSFK) and several Hungarian researchers are part of the consortium that has been awarded the 2023 Lancelot M. Berkeley – New York Community Trust Meritable Work in Astronomy Prize. The prize was awarded to the consortium responsible for the implementation of the Gaia project for creating the largest and most accurate three-dimensional map of the Milky Way. Read more in the press release at https://elkh.org/en/news/the-gaia-collaboration-including-csfk-researchers-wins-2023-berkeley-prize-for-creation-of

STAR FORMATION WITH SPACEBORNE INFRARED FACILITIES: THE ERA OF JWST – COSPAR 44

We are organizing a scientific event during COSPAR 44, the 2022 assembly of the Committee for Space Research, to be held in Athens, Greece. Almost 40 years since the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) completed the first, full-sky survey, a succession of infrared space-born facilities (ISO, Spitzer and Herschel) have each pushed the frontiers, helping us to uncover the complex processes which govern the formation of stars and planets. The unique capabilities of the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will soon allow us to study the, otherwise inaccessible, energetic processes governing the formation of stars and planets, to an unprecedented … Read more »

20 years of VLTI – going faint − An EAS 2022 Special Session

With this special session we aim to celebrate the 20 years of the VLTI and look towards the future. The proposed topics will range from the more generalist VLTI history and future to instrumentation and capabilities. Specific topics on interferometry, data reduction and modelling will also be presented. Contributed talks and posters are welcome, focusing on VLTI visitor instruments and science results. For more information, visit the session’s web page at https://eas.unige.ch/EAS2022/session.jsp?id=SS29 Scientific organisers

The James Webb Space Telescope: a new window on the Universe − An EAS 2022 symposium

The delivery of the first scientific data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in mid 2022, after commissioning, will be the astronomical event of the year. JWST will provide unprecedented imaging and spectroscopic capabilities in the 0.6-28μm band, with a sensitivity that will be even orders of magnitude higher than current and past facilities in some spectral ranges. Undoubtedly, in the years to come, JWST will open a huge, new discovery space in most areas of astronomy and astrophysics. By the time of the EAS 2022 meeting, the commissioning of the telescope and of the instruments should be either … Read more »

This project has reveived funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agrement No 716155).