Instructions for Visiting Astronomers on Mission to Chile

Garching, April 2008

Contents:

• I. General
• II. Instructions for Travel Arrangements
• III. Observing Run at La Silla/Paranal
• IV. Publications
• Financial Conditions
• Important Addresses

I. General

1. During their official mission in Chile, Visiting Astronomers are subject to the authority of the ESO Directorate. This does not apply to any private stays.
   
   
2. Visiting Astronomers must refrain from acts prejudicial to ESO under the Convention between Chile and ESO. They shall refrain from public declarations or activity. They shall not sell anything brought by them to Chile.
   
   
3. Astronomers visiting La Silla/Paranal should be in good health and fully able to work and stay at an altitude of 2.600 m and should be free of heart problems, cancer, tuberculosis, diabetes or other chronic diseases which might require specialist's treatment.
   
   
4. Driving in Chile is permitted only with an International Driving Licence. The use of a car at the Observatory site will only be allowed if either an international or a national driver's license is presented.
   
   
5. Before leaving La Silla / Paranal and/or the Guesthouse in Santiago, Visiting Astronomers shall settle their personal accounts.
   Since advances cannot be given, it is recommended that they carry along sufficient funds (money exchange at airport for minor personal expenses), also for further journeys after the completion of their mission.
   
   
6. Mailing address during the Visiting Astronomers' stay in Chile:
   European Southern Observatory, Casilla 19001, Santiago 19 - Chile.
   Every Friday there is a diplomatic bag leaving the ESO office in Garching and one leaving from Santiago. In compliance with international agreements, Visiting Astronomers are only allowed to use this bag for sending observational material or letters. ESO reserves the right to open and check all mail and parcels.
   
   
7. IMPORTANT: The new ESO Policy for sending emails, in force from 03 March 2008, prevents visiting astronomers from using a server at their home institute for sending mail.
   There will not be any restrictions for the reception of emails. To send emails, there will be the following possibilities:
   - use a server with webmail interface,
   - set up a private VPN connection with the home institute,
   - use the server in ESO Garching. No identification is needed, only a 5' setup that can be done by HelpDesk.
   

II. Instructions for Travel Arrangements

1. At least two months before the start of the observing mission, every Visiting Astronomer traveling to the ESO observatories in Chile will have to submit a Travel Form which will be handled by VAtravel@eso.org. This procedure does not apply to ESO staff, as well as fellows and students at ESO.
   Upon submission of the Travel Form an automatic confirmation of receipt will immediately be returned by e-mail. If this e-mail confirmation is not returned, VAtravel@eso.org should be contacted.
   
   The Travel Form contains the essential information concerning the observing run, the personal data of the observer and the requested flights to and from Santiago. Any personal information provided in the Travel Form will be treated in a strictly confidential manner. Some nationalities require a visa to enter Chile. It is the responsibility of the Visiting Astronomer to check whether he/she needs a visa and to obtain it in time from the relevant Chilean Consulate. If it is indicated on the Travel Form that a visa is required, VAtravel will automatically send an official letter to the traveler certifying his status as Visiting Astronomer at ESO for the length of the observing mission.
   
   In accordance with the information provided in the Travel Form, ESO will book the international flights and arrange for the accommodation and local transport in Chile.
   Therefore Visiting Astronomers are requested to fill in the form timely, accurately and completely. Any extra costs arising from wrong or late information provided in the Travel Form will be charged to the Visiting Astronomer. If these instructions are not followed ESO reserves the right to cancel the observing time.
   
   
2. ESO will only organize direct flights to/from Chile. Any travel arrangements that include additional trips or stop-overs on the way, which cannot be covered with the original airfare, are the responsibility of the Visiting Astronomer. ESO will then transfer to the Visiting Astronomer the amount of money corresponding to the cheapest return flight to Chile. When submitting the Travel Form, the Visiting Astronomer will have to provide under item C all necessary information regarding additional trips/stop-overs, as well as the bank, account no., code, town, country.
   
   
3. Once the flights requested in the Travel Form have been confirmed by VAtravel, the ticket will automatically be issued in due time before the departure date.
   Unless absolutely necessary, it will not be possible to change the ticket once issued. The information provided on the Travel Form regarding the Visiting Astronomer's preferred airline is not compelling. ESO reserves the right to book flights on the other mentioned airlines if more favorable financial conditions are offered.
   Any delays of the scheduled flights, due to unforeseen circumstances are to be reported as soon as possible, either to Santiago or to Garching (telefax and telephone numbers on last page).
   Due to the ever-present risk of late delivery of checked-in baggage upon arrival in Santiago, it is recommended to carry in hand-luggage all essentials, and in particular the documents concerning the observing programme.
   
   
4. Transport schedules within Chile foresee an overnight stay in the guest house in Santiago upon arrival and before the departure.
   Special transports to or from the observatories will not be arranged, except in very special cases that require prior approval. Direct flight connections between the observatories are not provided. Observers at both observatories must return to Santiago and travel to the other observatory the next day. Alternatively, bus transportation is possible overnight from La Serena to Antofagasta.
   
   
5. As a rule ESO will book the national flights to the observatories for all Visiting Astronomers, including those not financially supported by ESO.
   This is in order to ensure that the national flights match with the surface transports to the observatories. If applicable, the costs will be debited to the observers before departure from Chile.
   Under exceptional circumstances, it may be necessary that the Visiting Astronomer books the flights directly to Antofagasta. In this case the flight LA 342 07:50 to 09:40 must be taken and it must be made clear on the Travel Form that the national flights have already been booked.
   
   
6. When planning their trip to Chile, Visiting Astronomers must follow the below requirements. Any deviations require prior approval by the observatories.
   Requests for approval must be sent to VAtravel (VAtravel@eso.org) well before the Travel Form is submitted. Non-compliance with these instructions may result in the cancellation of the observing time.

   a) The requested presence at the observatory before the start of the observations depends on the instrumentation used and is summarized in the table below.
   


REQUESTED PRESENCE AT THE OBSERVATORY BEFORE THE START OF THE OBSERVATIONS

PARANAL	All UTs instruments except UT2/UVES	48 hours (2 days) 24 hours (1 day)
LA SILLA	All NTT, 3.6m and 2.2m instruments except FEROS	48 hours (2 days) 24 hours (1 day)


For more information from the Observatories, please check the La Silla and Paranal web pages (by clicking on the observatory name).

Please note that for Paranal due to the tight logistic situation which mostly results from the ongoing activities of integration and commissioning of new instruments and subsystems, earlier arrival at the observatory cannot be accommodated. Similarly, Visiting Astronomers are required to leave Paranal immediately after their last night. For the stay in Santiago, please also consult paragraph III, 5.

b) Visiting Astronomers conducting the observations have to be either the PI or one of the Co-Is of the corresponding ESO programme.

c) As a rule only one observer per observing run is accepted. Requests for additional observer(s) must include a scientific justification for the presence of two observers and the names of the proposed observers. The request has to be sent by email to vatravel@eso.org with copy to visas@eso.org. Requests that are not submitted in due time may not be considered.

While every effort will be made to answer requests within a few days, delays may occasionally occur due to uncertainties about the logistic situation at the observatory at the time of the considered observations,
ESO will normally cover the expenses for one observer only. Under exceptional circumstances, ESO may make a contribution to the travel and/or board and lodging costs of additional persons.

III. Observing Run at La Silla/Paranal

1. Visiting Astronomers execute the programmes accepted by ESO, and may deviate from these only under exceptional circumstances, and after approval by the ESO Directorate.
   
   
2. Visiting Astronomers bringing along special equipment must inform the ESO office in Garching (Mr. R. Guha: rguha@eso.org) at least 6 weeks in advance of the complete list of all items to be shipped. They will receive information concerning transport, import, and export procedure. While ESO may provide assistance in every aspect of the transport and customs procedures, this can only be done well in advance of the arrival of the visitor. ESO cannot give any guarantee concerning transport or customs clearance.
   
   
3. Upon arrival at the observatory the Visiting Astronomer will normally be met by the staff astronomer who will introduce him/her to the instrumentation, and where applicable necessary help for the preparation of the observing blocks will be provided. Assistance during the first night of observation may be given, however, not on all telescopes; therefore observational experience as well as familiarity with the manuals provided is assumed on the part of the Visiting Astronomer.
   
   
4. All observational data obtained with the ESO telescopes remain the property of ESO. At the end of their observing run and before leaving the observatory, Visiting Astronomers are requested to fill in a special form in which they give a report of their observing run.
   
   
5. ESO Chile staff astronomers like to meet astronomers from abroad and would therefore appreciate if Visiting Astronomers could make it possible to stay an extra day in the Santiago Headquarters to meet them and possibly also colleagues from Chilean universities. The presentation of a talk would also be very welcome. Please contact the ESO Colloquium coordinators in Santiago, Julia Scharwaechter and Elena Mason, at colloquia@eso.org.

IV. Publications

Publications based on observations collected at the ESO Observatory should mention in a footnote on the first page "Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory, Chile" including the corresponding observing proposal which should clearly be identified by its ESO number (example: ESO N° 70.A-0555).

Please notify Uta Grothkopf at esodata@eso.org upon acceptance or publication of a paper based on ESO data, including the bibliographic reference (article title, authors, journal title, volume, year, pages) and the program IDs of the data used.

Financial Conditions

1. The ESO financial support is only granted to astronomers affiliated to institutions in the ESO Member States at the time of the observations.
   Astronomers working in an ESO non member institution with 'multinational character' are only financially supported, if their salaries are directly paid by an ESO member state organization or agency. In this case a corresponding confirmation has to be provided by the astronomer.
   In exceptional cases, e.g. short term stays in a non member state institution, it can be decided on a case by case basis, as to whether the astronomer is supported from ESO funds.
   
   
2. In case a Visiting Astronomer intends to transport own equipment to the observatory, ESO may assume all or part of the corresponding costs.
   
   
3. ESO shall provide to a Visiting Astronomer free board and lodging in the Guesthouse in Santiago and at Paranal or La Silla for the observing period. In case there is no room available in the Guesthouse hotel accommodation will be provided and a daily allowance amounting to the equivalent of € 25,- will be handed over to the visiting astronomer for meals (this being applicable only to those financed by ESO.
   
   
4. Any additional reimbursable non-private costs can be claimed by filling in the travel expense claim. This claim has to be sent to the Visiting Astronomers Section supported by the ticket stubbs and receipts for miscellaneous expenses (this does not apply for passport or visas costs). As a rule the most economical air, train or bus ticket will be reimbursed. If the Visiting Astronomer prefers to travel by private car or taxi to the airport, the equivalent of a train ticket (2nd class) will be reimbursed.
   
   
5. Visiting Astronomers carrying out scientific work at the ESO observatories in Chile will be insured for Accidental Death, Accidental Permanent Disability, and Urgent Medical Care.

   The guarantees shall apply during the journey from the usual residence of the Visitor to the place where the mission has to be fulfilled, upon arrival on this place until the moment the Visitor leaves after fulfillment of the mission and during the return journey, from the place where the mission has been fulfilled to the usual residence of the insured person. The insurance coverage through ESO does NOT apply to any stay or travel before, during or after the mission (e.g. private activities, holidays, etc.); the Visitor is advised to take out an adequate travel insurance for these activities.

   In case of Accidental Death - a lump sum of € 64.000,- shall be paid.

   In case of Accidental Permanent Disability - a lump sum of € 128.000,- shall be paid, if degree of permanent disability more than 2/3 as a result of an accident that occurred during insurance period. If degree below 2/3, but higher than 1/3 the above amount shall be adapted according to the medically recognized degree of disability. If the degree of disability is less than 1/3, no payment shall be due.

   Medical Care - Expenses for urgent medical care are reimbursable in conformity with Article 16 - 19 of the ESO Group Insurance contract, with a maximum of € 5.200,-. In case of accident, these amounts will be doubled. Reimbursement of medical expenses is only possible on presentation of the relevant certificate issued by the attending physician. Reimbursement should be requested through VAtravel at ESO Garching.

   In case Visiting Astronomers carry in their hand-luggage any equipment of substantial value to be used, they should inform the Section Visiting Astronomers before the journey so that the appropriate customs formalities can be arranged.

6. When free board, lodging, and travel are not provided by ESO, the charges are as follows:

Lodging in ESO Guesthouse Santiago (breakfast included)	€ 40,-
Main meal in ESO Guesthouse Santiago	€ 10,-
24-hour stay at La Silla / Paranal	€ 40,-
One-way air transfer to/from La Silla	€ 90,-
One-way surface transport La Serena - La Silla	€ 25,-
One-way air transfer to/from Paranal	€ 150,-
One-way surface transport Antofagasta - Paranal	€ 25,-
Transfer (one-way) within Santiago (appr.)	€ 10,-

Prices are indicative and subject to fluctuation in air fares and exchange rates.

Astronomers are asked to settle their bills before leaving Chile.
Credit cards (Euro/Master, AMEXCO and VISA) are accepted at ESO.
Otherwise payment should be done preferably in Euro (cash). Payments in US$ (cash or traveler's cheques) are also accepted.

Note: For visa requirements, please consult http://www.wordtravels.com/Travelguide/Countries/Chile/Visa.
This link is provided for general information only. ESO cannot be held liable for the contents of this page.

Important Addresses