Exchange visitors program

1
OPTICAL INTERFEROMETRY

• The objectives of the European Interferometry
  Initiative are to bring optical interferometry to
  main stream astronomy and enable all the
  countries of Europe to participate fully in
  technical and scientific developments in optical
  interferometry through
• Facilitate communications and collaborations
  between European scientists and institutes
  working on optical long-baseline interferometry
  for astronomy
• Exploit synergy within Europe in order to
  produce world leading science in the field of
  optical long-baseline interferometry
• Work toward integration of educational
  activities on an European scale, both for
  professional astronomers through workshop and
  symposia, and at the graduate level
• Work toward developing a European vision on the
  long term future of optical long-baseline
  interferometry.

Exchange visitors program Funding will be made
available for visits of researchers to other
institutes within the European Community to
perform collaborative work on one of the active
topics of the European Interferometry Initiative.
Working groups Working groups exist on (1)
Visibility modeling from radiative transfer
codes (2) Interferometric tests of stellar
model atmospheres. The working groups will each
meet at least five times during the project, and
compile a final report. Next-generation
interferometric facility A series of workshop
are organized that deal with different aspects of
a vision on the next generation interferometric
facility (post VLTI/DARIN era). Ranging from
science case to technology roadmap. Joint
research activities OPTICON also supports an R
D programme for interferometry. Contact Dr.
Alain Chelli Chelli_at_laog.obs.ufj-grenoble.fr
European Interferometry Initiative
(EII) Scientists active in the field of optical
interferometry in Europe have created a vehicle
called the European Interferometry Initiative
(EII) to bring optical interferometry into
mainstream astronomy. One of its activities is
the Optical Interferometry forum as a network
activity within the OPTICON project.
Networking Interferometry the combination of
multiple telescopes in a single coherent array
is a powerful technique that allows astronomers
to obtain unprecedented angular resolution and to
measure motions of celestial bodies with extreme
precision. The objectives of our networking
activities are (1) to exploit the scientific
opportunities of the new facilities (2) to
integrate interferometry with more traditional
astronomical techniques and make interferometry
accessible to non-specialists (3) to develop a
long-term scientific perspective for optical /
infrared interferometry well into the next
decade. The network will ensure that Europe will
play a leading role in the development of optical
interferometry, both on the ground and in space,
in the foreseeable future. The following
activities will be undertaken
OPTICON - The Optical Infrared Coordination
Network for Astronomy Web www.astro-opticon.org

OPTICON is funded by the European Commission
under Contract RII3-CT-2004-001566