European
Southern
Observatory
ESO Science Newsletter December 2024
20 Dec 2024

This newsletter is a summary of recent ESO Science Announcement items. Follow the links or visit ESO Science Announcements to read more.



Science Announcements


Release of the VIRAC Version2 Catalogues from the VVV and VVVX Surveys

23 Dec 2024:

ESO is pleased to announce the public release of the VVV Infrared Astrometric Catalogues (VIRAC) Version 2. The catalogues are based on data from the VISTA Variables in the Via Lactea (VVV) Survey and its extension, VVVX, and offer unprecedented precision in astrometric and depth.

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Message from the Director General

19 Dec 2024:

Dear colleagues,

From several viewpoints, 2024 was a year when ESO started to move towards new future avenues, while running very strong on its current commitments.

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La Silla Paranal Period 115 Phase 2: Deadline

19 Dec 2024:

With the release of the La Silla Paranal telescope schedule, the Phase 2 preparation for runs scheduled in Service Mode begins. The deadline for the submission of the Phase 2 material for Period 115 is Thursday, 6 February 2025. The Service Mode guidelines provide detailed information about Phase 2 material preparation using the web application p2, while the instrument overview table provides quick links to user manuals, tools and p2 tutorials for individual instruments.

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Registration and Abstract Submission are Open - Galactic Ecosystems under the Microscope: Lessons from Highly-Resolved Studies

18 Dec 2024:

Registration and abstract submision are now open for the ESO conference "Galactic Ecosystems under the Microscope: Lessons from Highly-Resoved Studies", Garching bei München, Germany, 7th to 11th July 2025. This workshop is dedicated to exploring the latest developments in resolved galaxy properties and evolution. With next-generation observatories like JWST, ELT, and the SKA, upgrades to ALMA and VLA, we are entering a new era in understanding these critical aspects of galaxies throughout cosmic history.

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Binary Packages for the Installation of ESO Pipelines under Ubuntu, MacOS and Windows

13 Dec 2024:

ESO is pleased to announce that binary packages for the installation of ESO Pipelines are now available for all commonly used operating systems. This results in a faster and more reliable installation compared to compiling locally from source. Compiled binaries can be installed using the Homebrew package manager under Linux, MacOS or Windows. Alternatively, RPM binaries can be installed within the Apptainer container system or natively in some versions of Linux Fedora or CentOS. Source code installation is still available for all operating systems, including with MacPorts on MacOS. 

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ESO Summer Research Programme 2025

13 Dec 2024:

After the great success of the program in the last six editions, ESO is delighted to announce that the call for applications for the 7th ESO Summer Research Programme is now open. This fully funded program is available to students in STEM fields who have not yet started a Ph.D. program and have completed at least two years of their degree. This year, ESO is offering several projects covering a variety of topics. Successful applicants will be invited to work at the ESO Headquarters in Garching for six weeks between 30 June and 8 August 2025.

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ESO Workshop "Planetary Formation and Exoplanets in the ELT Era", ESO Garching, 17-21 November 2025

26 Nov 2024:

This is the initial announcement for the upcoming ESO workshop "Planetary Formation and Exoplanets in the ELT era" at ESO Garching, 17 - 21 November 2025. This workshop will discuss the understanding of how giant and rocky planets form and evolve, their internal structure
and that of their atmosphere, in the context of the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT).

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Results of the ACA Standalone Cycle 8 2021 Supplemental Call

25 Nov 2024:

A detailed report on the results of the ACA Standalone Cycle 8 2021 Supplemental Call is now available. The report details the proposal statistics and regional distributions, as well as the proposal distribution across science categories and receiver bands.

The report can be downloaded as a pdf document.

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VANDELS Public Spectroscopic Survey: First Data Release

25 Nov 2024:

VANDELS is a deep Public Spectroscopic Survey of high-redshift galaxies with the VIMOS spectrograph. It is designed to exploit the multi-wavelength imaging and near-IR grism spectroscopy available in the CANDELS UDS and CDFS fields. The goal is to obtain spectra with sufficient signal-to-noise ratio to derive metallicities and velocity offsets from absorption and emission lines, allowing a detailed investigation of the physics of galaxies in the early Universe. Within an area of 0.2 deg2, the survey will deliver more than 2500 high (15-20) signal-to-noise spectra of star forming galaxies in the redshift range 2.5 < z< 5.5, passive galaxies with H< 22.5 at 1.5 < z < 2.5, and star forming galaxies at 3.0 < z < 7.0 with H < 27, in the AB magnitude system.

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Additional Scope for ALMA Long Baseline Science Verification Targets

25 Nov 2024:

The ALMA Long Baseline Campaign, taking place from 1 September to 30 November 2014, has been proceeding well. As a result, the observatory has decided to expand the scope of the capabilities to be demonstrated with two Science Verification (SV) targets with Band 7: the pre-main sequence star HL Tau and the gravitational lens SDP 81. Information on ALMA SV can be found here.

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ESSENCE FORS1 Advanced Data Products Available Via Phase 3

25 Nov 2024:

The project "Equation of State: SupErNovae trace Cosmic Expansion" (ESSENCE) aimed to collect ~200 Type Ia SNe over the redshift range 0.15 to 0.75 to study the equation of state of Dark Energy. Spectra were taken for this project with FORS1 in a Large Programme (ID 170.A-0519) and published by Matheson et al. 2005. Advanced data products are now available for these spectra via the query form of the Science Archive.

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The Latest Edition of ESO's Science and Technology Journal, The Messenger, is now Available Online.

15 Nov 2024:

This issue 193 focuses on the potential synergies between ESO and SKAO facilities and what science would be possible with well-planned coordinated surveys. The specific cases of exploring with such surveys the Galaxy, galaxy formation and evolution, cosmology, and the epoch of reionisaiton are presented in a series of articles. Further in this issue the VST-SMASH survey and its first results are presented, as well as the latest news on the ongoing upgrades of GRAVITY+. 

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Expanding Horizons: Transforming Astronomy in the 2040s

14 Nov 2024:

With the Extremely Large Telescope (ESO’s ELT) just a few years away from completion, ESO has started the process to identify its next programme. The process has been given the name Expanding Horizons and will aim to identify the next transformational facility that will advance humanity’s understanding of the Universe whilst fostering international collaboration. 

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Upcoming ESO or ESO-related workshops
 
 

The workshop will focus on understanding the chemical composition and evolution of young star and planet-forming systems, leveraging recent advancements in observational techniques from facilities like ALMA, NOEMA, VLA and JWST. Key questions include how molecular content evolves and influences exoplanet chemistry. The workshop aims to explore current knowledge and limitations, foster collaboration, and provide insights into future observational advancements with upcoming ESO facilities and new instruments.

 

Join ESO for a special conference to celebrate Bruno Leibundgut’s 65th birthday and to unveil a value of the Hubble constant.

 

Variability in young stellar objects (YSOs) has long been observed, both photometrically and spectroscopically, across a range of amplitudes and timescales (hours, days, and years). This variability happens at the time of formation of stars and planets, two closely linked events. With new results from recent and ongoing observational studies, it is a perfect time to bring together experts in this field to address the open questions on YSO variability.

 

The intricate physics governing galaxy evolution, from inflows and outflows to star formation-driven turbulence and stellar feedback, operate on small scales, often just a few parsec. For years, such detailed resolution was achievable only for the Milky Way and its immediate satellites. However, recent advancements driven by major investments for ESO facilities, including ALMA and the VLT, along with synergetic instruments such as the HST, JWST, SITELLE, VLA, and MeerKAT, have triggered a scientific revolution. In response to these exciting advancements, ESO is pleased to announce a workshop dedicated to exploring the latest developments in resolved galaxy properties and evolution. This workshop will bring together leading experts to discuss recent scientific findings and prepare for future breakthroughs in the field.