Category Archives: Activities

The 6th “From AGN to starburst: A multi-wavelength synergy” Meeting Successfully Held in Guiyang, China

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During Aug. 12-16, 2019, the 6th “From AGN to starburst: A multi-wavelength synergy” was successfully held in Guiyang, China. The meeting was organized by National Astronomy Observatory of CAS (NAOC) and CAS South American Center of Astronomy (CASSACA), along with the Purple Mountain Observatory (PMO). Over 100 participants from 13 countries and regions attended this meeting. The AGN-starburst meeting series is a well-known international galaxy physics conference and it keeps focusing on the most advanced scientific researches and challenges in galaxy formation and evolution.

Poster of the meeting

Jiasheng Huang, SOC & Y.Sophia Dai, chair of SOC/LOC, delivered welcome speeches at the meeting

Throughout five days, over fifty reports and 17 poster talks were given by experts, young researchers and students. The presentations have a wide coverage, from the latest multi-wavelength observational results across redshifts, to the state-of-art simulation and theoretical models. Recent ALMA (the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) results are reported in studies of outflows, gas distribution and star formation efficiency in both AGNs and starburst galaxies. As for sky surveys in optical and infrared (IR) wavelength, speakers talked about features in different types of active galaxies and observational evidences related to “galaxy quenching”. These reports gave a detailed physical view of the relationship between supermassive blackhole (SMBH) and galaxy evolution.

(Nick Scoville, Marcia Rieke, Xiaohui Fan, Erin Hicks, Matt Malkan and Lei Hao)

(John Silverman, Luis Ho, Ran Wang, Yu Gao, Jeyhan Kartaltepe and Richard Bower)

Selected photos of experts giving presentations

On Aug. 15th, participants enjoyed a fantastic visit to the FAST (Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope) observatory, organized by LOC members Dr. Qisheng Li and Gaofeng Pan from the FAST observatory. After the introduction report by Dr. Chao-Wei Tsai, people had heated discussion and expressed appreciation as well as intentions for future collaborations with FAST.

Participants at the FAST observatory

Besides presentations, the meeting also sets aside time every day for free discussions. Heated debates and discussions were a common scene during these discussion sessions, over evidences in the connection between AGN and starburst, challenges in linking theoretical and simulations models to observations, as well as topics on large-scale galaxy evolution.

George Rieke, David Rosario, Jiasheng Huang, Yingjie Peng, David Elbaz, Dave Sanders in discussions

The last day of the meeting, a special session was dedicated to the many different future instruments and evolutionary results the new surveys would bring us. Principle Investigators or experts from FAST, JWST (James Webb Space Telescope), EP (Einstein Probe), eXTP (enhanced X-ray Timing and Polarimetry Mission) and CSST (Chinese Space Station Telescope) and other future instruments/surveys introduced the latest progresses and future plans. Final remarks and demand for future series were given by the SOC representatives at the end of the meeting. Participants thanked the organization by the LOC and SOC and looked forward to future international collaborations and the next meeting.

Translated by: Gaoxiang Jin, Y.Sophia Dai

Photo credit: Zijian Li, Gaoxiang Jin, Xu Shao

The Fifth China-Chile Bi-lateral Astronomy Science Meeting was successfully held in Kunming during Jan. 23-26, 2019

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Meeting group photo

In order to promote the communication and collaboration between astronomy communities of China and Chile, sponsored by Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), National Astronomical Observatories, CAS (NAOC), the “Fifth Chile-China Bi-lateral Astronomy Science Meeting” was successfully held in Kunming during Jan. 23-26, 2019. The meeting was organized by the CAS South American Center for Astronomy (CASSACA), also known as China-Chile Joint Center for Astronomy, along with Yunnan Astronomical Observatory (YNAO).

A glance at the meeting

CASSACA is one of the overseas projects initiated by CAS to develop cooperation in science and technology with foreign countries. In February 2013, CASSACA was inaugurated at NAOC, and its Santiago office was inaugurated in October 2013 at University of Chile. The Center serves as a platform for collaboration in astronomical research and related technologies between China and South America countries. The Center helps to build international scientific teams and joint programs engaging in frontier astronomy research. The China-Chile Astronomy Workshop is a major platform to strengthen communications in astronomical research between the two countries, and has been held alternately in Chile and China. It has been proven to be successful in the past meetings of the series, prompting knowledge and information exchange between astronomers, and initiating collaborative projects and joint programs.

Hui Sun, Director of America and Oceania Department, Bureau of International Co-operation, CAS, addressing the meeting
Suijian Xue, Deputy president of NAOC, addressing the meeting
Jiasheng Huang, Chief Scientist of CASSACA, hosting the meeting
Patricio Rojo , Chairman of SOCHIAS, introducing the astronomy in Chile
Participants discussing

Around 70 participants attended this Meeting, including experts, young scientists and students, coming from more than 20 institutes of China, Chile, and other countries. Professor. Jiasheng Huang, Chief Scientist of CASSACA, and Professor Jinming Bai, president of YNAO, offered their welcome as the hosts; Hui Sun, Director of Division of America and Oceanian Affairs, Bureau of International Cooperation, CAS and Suijian Xue, Deputy Director General of NAOC, both addressed the meeting; Dr. Wei Wang, Deputy Director of CASSACA, introduced the current status and future prospects of the Center; Professor Patricio Rojo, Chairman of Astronomical Society of Chile (SOCHIAS) and other Chilean astronomers expressed high expectations for the Chile-China cooperation, and gave a lot of suggestions and comments. At this Meeting, directors or their representatives of nearly all major astronomical observatories/departments of China and Chile summarized the major research areas and current activities of their institutions, including detailed talks on recent research highlights. During the four-day workshop, astronomers from both countries communicated cordially and comprehensively, reviewing the existing ties and finding opportunities for future collaborations. The bilateral meeting is recognized as an important catalyst for Chile-China astronomy communications, and a useful model for CAS to advance international cooperation widely.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Chilean President attend the Signing Ceremony of China-Chile Joint Astronomical Data Center

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Prof. Gang Zhao, Deputy Director General of National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NAOC), Mr. Hua Qin, General Manager of Huawei Chile, and Dr. Darcy Fuenzalida, President of Technical University of Federico Santa Maria of Chile (UTFSM), jointly signed the agreement on May 25, to create the China-Chile Joint Astronomical Data Center at the witness of Premier Li Keqiang and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet.

The China-Chile Joint Astronomical Data Center is one of the most important projects of the Chinese Academy of Sciences South America Center for Astronomy (CASSACA) since its establishment in October 2013 in Santiago. The Joint Data Center is a joint endeavor the CASSACA, Huawei and UTFSM. CASSACA, supported by NAOC under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has strong S&T resources. Huawei is one of the world leaders in production of hardware, and UTFSM is one of the top universities in computing science in Chile. The establishment of the Joint Data Center is a landmark event of the China-Chile bilateral science and technology cooperation. This Joint Center has the advantages of broadband transmission, mass storage and high performance computing, which will facilitate Chinese and Chile researchers to share and make full use of enormous astronomical data of ALMA, a world-class telescope in the northern Chile, and benefit astronomical research for both Chinese and Chilean communities.

Chile is the most ideal places in the world for the construction of astronomical observation facilities, as a result of its excellent geographical conditions, great support from its government and open policies.

CASSACA to co-sponsor a conference on “The Soul of High-mass star formation”

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CASSACA is co-sponsoring a conference on “The Soul of High-mass star formation”, which is to be held on March 15-20, in Puetro Varas, a beautiful port city in South Chile.

During the last decade many large-scale surveys (e.g. GLIMPSE, ATLASGAL) led to the identification of massive star formation regions in their earliest stages in our Galaxy. These have been observed with new instruments, in particular massive Herschel data has been taken to characterize physically and chemically the most embedded sources on moderate to large spatial scales. Today, when ALMA will soon begin full operations opening new windows in frequency, chemistry, spatial resolution, and sensitivity, it is timely to discuss our current understanding and open questions on massive star formation.

For more, please visit http://www.das.uchile.cl/star-formation.