Toward a European roadmap for Astronomy at CONCORDIA

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Toward a  European roadmap for Astronomy at
CONCORDIA

• Nicolas Epchtein
• CNRS-H. Fizeau lab. Université de Nice Sophia
  Antipolis,
• Nice, France
• On behalf of the ARENA consortium

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Antarctica is a continent exclusively dedicated
to peaceful Scientific Research(Antarctic Treaty
and Madrid Protocol, SCAR) This status should
be preserved thanks to a permanent presence of
researchers engaged in collaborative scientific
and multidisciplinary programmes of excellence.

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• Antarctica a very promising site for ground
  based astronomy in the future in a wide spectral
  range
• Unique environmental properties (? E. Fossat)
• Dome C, best Antarctic site offering a high
  level of operations/logistics capability thanks
  to IPEV PNRA
• Research efforts scattered (site testing,
  projects, vision..)
• Foster European and international and
  multidisciplinary collaborations
• Gather critical mass of teams
• Sweep away prejudices and myths about Polar
  conditions
• Reach a consensus for a roadmap of ambitious
  developments
• Awareness of funding Agencies, including ESO
  (ASTRONET)
• Requires better international organization at the
  researchers level, not just agencies
• Bottom-up action of the EC? ARENA

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http//arena.unice.fr
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ARENA Outreach pages (A. Surdej, Liège C.
Baudouin, M.-L. Péronne, CNRS) (http//www.arena.u
lg.ac.be/)
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• Main features and achievements of the
• ARENA network
• Coordination action of the 6th Framework
  Programme (RI, integrating Activity) (see
  website http//arena.unice.fr)
• Submitted in March 2005 granted June 2005
  started Jan. 2006
• Overall Budget 1.335 M
• 4-year contract (2006-2009) . Conclusions will
  be released in 2009
• 22 partners, incl. Polar Agencies (IPEV and
  PNRA), industrial companies, ESO, in 7 EU
  countries (Be, De, Fr, It, Sp, Pt, UK) and
  Australia
• Contract management and coordination (NA1 N.
  Epchtein/M.-L Péronne, Nice, Fr)
• Information and Communication Unit (ICU) in
  charge of public outreach see
  (http//www.arena.ulg.ac.be/) (A. Surdej)
• Executive Committee (CMC) (9 members agencies,
  observer)
• 4 meetings- 5th next Monday Sept. 22, 2008
• Scientific Advisory Board (SAB)

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• Partners of ARENA
• CNRS (H. Fizeau, IAP, LAM/OAMP, France)
  coordinator,
• INAF (several observatories, Italy),
• MPIA, Heidelberg (Germany),
• Astrophysikalisches Institut Potsdam (Germany),
  
• University of Granada (and University Autonoma
  of Madrid) (Spain),
• CSIC, Barcelona (Spain),
• Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (Spain),
• University of Exeter (UK),
• University of Perugia (Italy),
• Institut Paul Emile Victor (France),
• DLR, Berlin (Germany),
• Paris Observatory (France),
• CEA/SAp, Saclay (France),
• University of Liège (Belgium),
• Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide
  (Italy),
• University of New South Wales, Sydney
  (Australia),
• SHAKTIWARE, Marseilles (France),

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Networking activities

• Four main networking activities subdivided into
  tasks (3 to 5 per NA)
• NA2 site qualification (R. Gredel, Heidelberg,
  De)
• Access to seeing and radiosounding balloons data
  from Fizeau. More to come.
• NA3 Instrumentation in polar environment
  (J.-P. Swings, Liège, Be)
• NA4 Logistics/operations (M. Candidi, Roma, It)
  (report in Dec 2008). Internet connection !
• NA5 Astrophysical Science Case (H. Zinnecker,
  Potsdam, De)
• NA5.3 ? time variabilities
• Roscoff ARENA1 Conference, Epchtein Candidi,
  2007, Proc. EDP EAS vol25
• Potsdam ARENA2 Conference, Zinnecker, Epchtein,
  Rauer, 2008, Proc. in press EDP EAS vol 33

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ARENA Working groups

• 6 dedicated Working Groups (created at Potsdam,
  Sept. 2007)to replace the  Technical
  Committee 
• Wide Field Optical/IR Astronomy (D. Burgarella,
  M. Burton)
• Submillimetric Astronomy (V. Minier, L. Olmi)
• Optical/IR Interferometry (V. Coudé du Foresto ,
  J. Surdej)
• Time-series observations (H. Rauer, H. Deeg)
• Cosmic Microwave background experiments (P. De
  Bernardis, Y Giraud-Héraud)
• High Angular Solar physics (L. Damé, Andrate)
• Aimed to document the final recommendation book

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Long time series observations from Antarctica

• Great benefit from long continuous dark periods
  (3-4 months) ? better sampling
• Easier to manage than arrays of telescopes across
  the world
• Several hot astronomical topics
• Asteroseismology and internal structure/evolution
  of stars
• Stellar activity (spots, rotation)
• Direct identification of exoplanets transits
• gravitational lensing

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Requirements

• Needs long observing times during several seasons
  ? specific instrument
• ? basically one instrument per programme
• ? thus modest budget
• Interest for a 2m 3 m class telescope?

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ARENA Task 5.3 Time variability

• New domains for ground based high precision and
  long duration time-series photometry and
  spectroscopy . Task Leader DLR, (H. Rauer)
• (1) An evaluation of Dome C's capabilities
  (atmospheric stability, long polar night) for
  high-precision and long-duration time-series
  observations, with particular emphasis on stellar
  and planetary research
• (2)   An evaluation of the synergy with the COROT
  and Kepler space missions.

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• Task 5.3.1 Helio and asteroseismology, leader
  E. Fossat (CNRS)
• better helioseismology at Dome C
• unique advantages of Dome C for asteroseismology
  of low-mass stars.
• design a compact imaging seismometer
  (SIAMOIS?B. Mosser)
• Task 5.3.2 Photometric search for extrasolar
  planets, leader H. Deeg (IAC, Tenerife )
• site assessment (a-Step, small-IRAIT) (talks by
  N. Crouzet, J.-B. Daban, K. Strassmeier)
• wide-field robotic telescope for an intensive
  search for Earth-mass planets in the habitable
  zone via microlensing. (a-Step, Ice-T)
• Task 5.3.3 Solar-stellar connection, leader
  K. Strassmeier (AIP)
• continuous photometric monitoring of stellar
  cyclic activity
• which spectroscopic monitoring of line
  variations benefits from Dome C conditions (to
  reconstruct stellar differential rotation),
• the parameters of a robotic optical/near-IR
  telescope and data transfer rates to achieve the
  above goals of photometry and spectroscopy. ?
  (IceT) (ARENA Workshop on Robotization, Tenerife,
  March 2007, Astr. Nachr. 328, 451)

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instrumental projects at DomeC

• Small size (lt1m)
• In operations
• Cochise (2.5 m), BRAIN CMB polarization
• In construction
• IRAIT (2009-10) 80 cm IR imaging
• A-Step (2009-10) 40 cm optical imaging/high
  precision photometry
• In project (phase A)
• Ice-T (2012?) 2 x 60 cm optical imaging/high
  precision photometry
• Siamois (2012?) 40 cm optical/FTS tachometer
• Medium size (1- 10 m)
• In project, phase A
• PILOT (phase A) 2.5 m optical/IR pathfinder
  (2013-14)
• Aladdin 2x 1 m pathfinder for interferometry (?)
• Concept study
• Submillimeter antenna 12 m (?), ASO, Seefira
• Solar corona telescope, interferometer A-Fourmi
• Large projects (gt12m)
• Km array interferometers (THz array and
  optical/IR KEOPS)
• ELTs (Antarctic GMT)

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Conclusions and agenda 1/2

• Dome C is likely to be a great site for
  Time-series observations
• More site testing data are needed.
• Political situation rather intricate, ARENA helps
  to foster collaborations and to draw out a
  roadmap
• The conclusions of ARENA will be considered by
  national agencies, and international
  organizations (ESO, EC) for future long term
  evaluations and decisions about antarctic
  astronomy.
• ARENA is just the beginning of a long story next
  step is to coordinate RD actions (FP7, March
  2010)
• 2009 is an important year (end of IPY and
  IYA2009). Outreach action ANR in France.
• Importance to maintain pressure to secure Dome C
  operations (funding problems)

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Conclusions and agenda (2/2)

• Try to coordinate effort
• centralizing requests to Polar Agencies
  (logisics, equipments, )
• mutualizing technical solutions and logistics
  requirements
• Contributing to multipurpose pathfinder
  telescopes (express interest in the PILOT
  project ? phase B)
• Working groups should be prepared to present
  their preliminary conclusions on 12 December 2008
  to the ARENA CMC
• NA4 meeting (December) to coordinate and forward
  logistics requirements of the WG and tasks to
  Polar Agencies.
• Synthetical presentations at ARENA3 Conference
  (Frascati, 11 May 2009)
• Write their recommendations for the conclusions
  book (10-20 pages in all), based on conclusions
  of this workshop ? end 2009

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  3rd ARENA Conference "An astronomical
Observatory at CONCORDIA (Antarctica) for the
next decade" Chair/co-chair L. Spinoglio N.
Epchtein   Frascati (Italy) - May 11-15,
2009 Registration will open soon
  Special Session of the IAU General Assembly
  Astronomy in Antarctica   Chairman M. Burton
(UNSW, Australia)   Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) ,
August 6-7, 2009  
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• Many thanks to the organizers of this workshop
  (LOC and SOC) and, in particular, to Giuseppe
  Cutispoto
• and the
• Catania Observatory
• And to Alitalia!
• Thank you for your attention!
• And lets have a fruitful discussion