ALMASPACE: designing the computational future of the European ALMA community in the WSU era
Published: 19 Oct 2026
The ALMASPACE (ALMA Science Platforms for Analysis and Calibration in Europe) development study officially kicked off in Gothernburg on 21 September 2026. Over the next two years, the study will investigate how the European ALMA Regional Centre (ARC) network can support its user community with the computing and storage resources needed to fully exploit the scientific potential of the ALMA Wideband Sensitivity Upgrade (WSU).
By bringing together the expertise, infrastructure and user-support experience of the entire European ARC network, ALMASPACE aims to turn the Science Platform concept into a concrete and scalable pathway for the next generation of ALMA science.
The WSU will open new scientific opportunities for the ALMA community, but will also bring a major computational challenge. Much larger data volumes and increasingly demanding data analysis workflows will make it harder for individual users to go beyond standard pipeline products, perform advanced reprocessing, generate tailored data products, or combine data from multiple projects. New approaches to accessing computing and storage resources will therefore be essential.
ALMASPACE is a common effort of the entire European ARC network, led by the ARC nodes in Italy and the Netherlands (Allegro), with NOVA as the main ESO contractor and with participation from all other European nodes. The project builds on more than 15 years of experience of the European ARC network in supporting ALMA users and on the diverse computing infrastructures and expertise already available across Europe.
At the core of ALMASPACE is the concept of Science Platform: a dedicated environment combining substantial storage and computing power with the software and tools required for ALMA data processing and analysis. The study will implement and test several existing Science Platform prototypes, assess the computational requirements expected in the WSU era, and map the resources and expertise available across the ARC network. These activities will provide the basis for a scalable design for future European ALMA Science Platforms, tailored to the needs of the user community.
The study will also explore different pathways towards implementation, from local and national infrastructures to European, international and commercial resources, with the aim of developing a realistic roadmap towards a sustainable solution for 2030s.
