For the last twoyears, I have workedas a fellow at theSantiago offices of theEuropean SouthernObservatory (ESO)with support responsi-bilities at the Very
Large Telescope (VLT) on Cerro Para-nal in the north of Chile. This is es-
PhD at the University of Cambridge inthe summer of 2000.
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Agreement Between the Government of theRepublic of Chile and ESO for Establishing a NewCentre for Observation in Chile – ALMAReproduced from ESO Press Release 18/02 (23 October 2002)
On October 21, 2002, the Minister ofForeign Affairs of the Republic of Chile,Mrs. María Soledad Alvear, and theESO Director General, Dr. CatherineCesarsky, signed an Agreement thatauthorizes ESO to establish a newcentre for astronomical observation inChile.
This new centre for astronomical ob-servation will be for the Atacama LargeMillimeter Array (ALMA), the largestground-based astronomical project forthe next decades.
On this occasion, Minister Alvearstated that “we want to have ALMAworking as soon as possible, which willconstitute a pride not only to Chileanscientists but for the whole country andin particular, for the community of theAntofagasta Region”.
ESO Director General Cesarsky saidthat “signing this agreement betweenthe Government of Chile and ESOis a historical step in the astronomical
collaboration between Chile and ESOand it will allow Chile to host, once
again, a project ofworldwide interestand impact”.
ALMA is a jointproject on equalbasis betweenESO and AUI (As-sociated Universi-ties, Inc.). Theseorganizations rep-resent the scien-tific interests ofEurope on oneside and theUnited States withCanada on theother side. Chile-an astronomersare closely in-volved with the
project, and 10 % of the observingtime will be reserved for Chilean sci-ence.
ALMA will be built in the Andes, onthe Plateau of Chajnantor, 5000 metresabove sea level and 60 km east of thetown of San Pedro de Atacama. The ar-ray will be comprised of 64 antennaswith unprecedented sensitivity and an-gular resolution that will allow studyingthe origin of galaxies, stars and planets,opening new horizons for astronomy,and being able to observe galaxiesacross the universe where stars are be-ing formed.
The agreement now signed betweenESO and the Government of theRepublic of Chile recognizes the inter-est that the ALMA Project has for Chile,as it will deepen and strengthen coop-eration in scientific and technologicalmatters between the parties.
Signing of the new Agreement that authorizes ESO to establish a new centre for astro-nomical observation in Chile. General view.
Chilean Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Chile, Mrs.María Soledad Alvear (seated, right) and the ESO Director General,Dr. Catherine Cesarsky (seated, left).
Eighty Nights Up a MountainBy SARA ELLISON
sentially a postdoctoral position; I start-ed here directly after I completed my
A version of this article first appeared in August 2002 in the onlinepublication Next Wave (www.nextwave.org), published by ScienceMagazine on the occasion of the UK joining ESO.
As Sara Ellison describes, she has been a Paranal Fellow for the pasttwo years and is currently in her third year at the Pontificia UniversidadCatólica de Chile in Santiago.