French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory

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fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-291" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/gravity+/"> GRAVITY+ </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/gravity/"> GRAVITY </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/matisse/"> MATISSE </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/naomi/"> NAOMI </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/pionier/"> PIONIER </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/amber/"> AMBER </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/midi/"> MIDI </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/vinci/"> VINCI </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/auxiliarytelescopes/"> Auxiliary Telescopes </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/"> Survey Telescopes <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-301" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/"> VISTA <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-302" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/mirror/"> The VISTA mirror </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/camera/"> VIRCAM </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/4most/"> 4MOST </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/surveys/"> The VISTA surveys </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vista/consortium/"> The VISTA consortium </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vst/"> VST <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-308" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vst/mirror/"> The VST mirrors </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vst/camera/"> OmegaCAM </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/surveytelescopes/vst/surveys/"> The VST surveys </a></li></ul></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/speculoos/"> SPECULOOS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/ngts/"> NGTS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/ctao/"> Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/"> La Silla Observatory <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-315" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/swedish/"> Swedish–ESO Submillimetre Telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-316" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/swedish/simba/"> SIMBA </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/"> New Technology Telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-318" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/efosc2/"> EFOSC2 </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/emmi/"> EMMI </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/irspec/"> IRSPEC </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/sofi/"> SOFI </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/soxs/"> SOXS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/susi2/"> SUSI and SUSI2 </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/"> ESO 3.6-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-325" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/adonis/"> ADONIS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/caspec/"> CASPEC </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/irspec/"> IRSPEC </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/harps/"> HARPS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/mefos/"> MEFOS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/nirps/"> NIRPS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/optopus/"> OPTOPUS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/timmi2/"> TIMMI/2 </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/36-infrared-photometer-spectrophotometer/"> Infrared Photometer/Spectrophotometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/36-standard-photometer/"> Standard Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/infrared-specklegraph/"> Infrared Specklegraph </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/infrared-speckle-interferometer/"> Infrared Speckle Interferometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/efosc/"> EFOSC </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/"> MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-339" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/feros/"> FEROS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/grond/"> GROND </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/irac2/"> IRAC & IRAC2 </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/pisco/"> PISCO </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/wfi/"> WFI </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mpg22/infrared-photometer-spectrophotometer/"> Infrared Photometer/Spectrophotometer </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/swiss/"> Swiss 1.2-metre Leonhard Euler Telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-346" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/swiss/coralie/"> CORALIE </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/rem/"> Rapid Eye Mount telescope </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/trappist/"> TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals Small Telescope–South </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/"> Danish 1.54-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-350" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/coravel/"> CORAVEL </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/dfosc/"> DFOSC </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/ccd/"> CCD camera </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/hb-photometer/"> Hβ Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/two-channel-photometer/"> Two-Channel Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/four-channel-photometer/"> Four-Channel Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish154/six-channel-photometer/"> Six-Channel uvby-Hβ Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/tarot/"> Télescope à Action Rapide pour les Objets Transitoires </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/1mschmidt/"> ESO 1-metre Schmidt telescope </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/152metre/"> ESO 1.52-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-360" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/152metre/bandc/"> Boller and Chivens Spectrograph </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/152metre/coude/"> Coudé Spectrograph </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/152metre/echelec/"> ECHELEC </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/152metre/rv-cass-spectrograph/"> RV Cass Spectrograph </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/1metre/"> ESO 1-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-365" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/1metre/fideos/"> FIDEOS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/1metre/infrared-photometer/"> Infrared Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/1metre/single-channel-photometer/"> Single-Channel Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/05metre/"> ESO 0.5-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-369" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/05metre/single-channel-photometer/"> Single-Channel Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/05metre/double-channel-photometer/"> Double-Channel Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/coude/"> Coudé Auxiliary Telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-372" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/coude/ces/"> CES </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/marly/"> MarLy 1-metre telescope </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/09metre/"> Dutch 0.9-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-375" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/09metre/walraven/"> Walraven Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/t70/"> Swiss T70 telescope </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/bochum/"> Bochum 0.61-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-378" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/bochum/bochum-scanner/"> Bochum Scanner </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/bochum/bochum-photometer/"> Bochum Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish05/"> Danish 0.5-metre telescope <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-381" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish05/danish-two-channel-hb-photometer/"> Two-Channel Hβ Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish05/danish-four-channel-uvby-photometer/"> Four-Channel uvby Photometer </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/danish05/danish-six-channel-uvby-hb-photometer/"> Six-Channel uvby–Hβ Photometer </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/gpo/"> Grand Prisme Objectif telescope </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/swiss04/"> Swiss 0.4-metre telescope </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/marseille/"> Marseille 0.36-metre telescope </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/grb/"> GRB Monitoring System </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/mascara/"> MASCARA </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/blackgem/"> BlackGEM </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/extra/"> ExTrA </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/lasilla/test-bed/"> Test-Bed Telescope </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/"> APEX <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-393" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/apex-2a/"> APEX–2A </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/artemis/"> ArTéMiS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/aszca/"> ASZCa </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/champ-plus/"> CHAMP+ </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/concerto/"> CONCERTO </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/flash/"> FLASH </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/flash-plus/"> FLASH+ </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/laboca/"> LABOCA </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/mpi_11thz/"> MPI_1.1THz </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/p-artemis/"> P-ArTéMiS </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/pi230/"> PI230 </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/polka/"> PolKa </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/saboca/"> SABOCA </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/sepia/"> SEPIA </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/apex/shefi/"> SHeFI </a></li></ul></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/"> ALMA <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-409" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/antennas/"> Antennas </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/transporters/"> Transporters </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/interferometry/"> Interferometry </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/receiver-bands/"> Receiver Bands </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/alma/residencia/"> ALMA Residencia </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/elt/"> ELT </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/"> Technology for Telescopes <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-416" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/active_optics/"> Active Optics </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/adaptive_optics/"> Adaptive Optics </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/ifu/"> Integral Field Units </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/interferometry/"> Interferometry </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/spectroscopy/"> Spectroscopy </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/technology/polarimetry/"> Polarimetry </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/teles-instr/instruments/"> Instruments </a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </li> <li><a href="/public/science/">Discoveries<span class="fa fa-angle-down level0-children-arrows"></span></a> <span class="mobile-children"> <span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span> </span> <div class="level1-wrapper"> <div class="level1"> <ul id="submenu-aim-424" class="submenu-aim"> <li class=""><a href="/public/science/key-discoveries/"> ESO Key Astronomical Discoveries </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/science/exoplanets/"> Exoplanets </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/science/gravitationalwaves/"> Gravitational Wave Sources </a></li><li class="submenu"><a class="no-link children" href="#"> Black Holes <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa fa-angle-right"></span></a><span class="mobile-children"><span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span></span><ul id="submenu-aim-428" class="submenu-aim sublevel"><li class=""><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/science/event-horizon/"> First image of a black hole </a></li><li class=""><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/science/EHT-MilkyWay/"> First image of the Milky Way central black hole </a></li><li class=""><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/science/gc/"> More about the black hole at the galactic centre </a></li></ul></li><li class=""><a href="/public/science/grb/"> Gamma-Ray Bursts </a></li><li class=""><a href="/public/science/archive/"> Science Archive </a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </li> <li><a href="/public/events/">Events<span class="fa fa-angle-down level0-children-arrows"></span></a> <span class="mobile-children"> <span class="fa fa-angle-down"></span> </span> <div class="level1-wrapper"> <div class="level1"> <ul id="submenu-aim-434" class="submenu-aim"> <li class=""><a href="/public/events/press-evt/"> Press Events </a></li><li class="submenu"><a href="/public/events/special-evt/"> Special Events <span class="desktop-children topmenu-arrow fa 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<div class="container " id="body"> <div class="row no-page"> <div class="col-md-12"> </div> </div> <div class="row page"> <div class="col-md-12 one-column"> <div id="edit-info-block"> <div id="page-edit-success" class="alert alert-success alert-dismissible" role="alert" style="display: none"> <button type="button" class="close" data-dismiss="alert" aria-label="Close"><span aria-hidden="true">×</span></button> Page saved successfully </div> <div id="page-edit-failure" class="alert alert-danger alert-dismissible" role="alert" style="display: none"> <button type="button" class="close" data-dismiss="alert" aria-label="Close"><span aria-hidden="true">×</span></button> Couldn't save page :( Please try again. </div> </div> <div class='page-content'> <div id="editable-content"> <h1>French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory</h1> <p align="center"><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/images/eso2008a/"><img src="https://www.eso.org/public/archives/images/newsfeature/eso2008a.jpg" alt="" /></a><br /><small>This image shows the disc around the young AB Aurigae star, where ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) has spotted signs of planet birth. The image was obtained with the VLT’s SPHERE instrument in polarised light, by a team <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2008/">led by French researchers</a>. Credit: ESO/Boccaletti et al.</small></p> <p>France is a founding member of ESO. The country signed the original convention on 5 October 1962 and officially became a Member State on 17 January 1964. As a founder, the country’s community of scientists and engineers has contributed to ESO projects in many key ways, from participating in scientific discoveries to contributing to the development of advanced instruments and telescopes for ESO facilities. </p> <p>France currently contributes 14.96% of ESO’s revenue (2021 contribution), worth 28 728 000 EUR. </p> <p>As of mid 2022, there are 76 French nationals employed at ESO, 55 in Germany and 21 in Chile. Furthermore, ESO has awarded 33 studentships, 66 fellowships and 13 internships to French nationals since 2004. </p> <p>France is represented in the various ESO governing and advisory bodies by astronomers and policy experts; the current French representatives of ESO’s various committees with national representation can be found <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/committees.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>. </p> <p>The ESO Science Outreach Network (ESON) includes French <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/outreach/partnerships/eson/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">representatives</a> who act as ESO’s media and outreach local contacts. </p> <p>Here follows some information about France’s involvement with ESO. </p> <h2>Discoveries by France-based astronomers using ESO telescopes </h2> <p>French researchers and those based at French institutions have been involved in important discoveries using ESO facilities, including many of the <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/science/top10/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ESO top 10 discoveries</a>. More recent scientific discoveries include </p> <ul> <li>The discovery of the largest group of rogue planets in a study led by Núria Miret-Roig (then at the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux, France). Using a combination of several ESO facilities, they could observe the heat emitted by the planets. “There could be several billions of these free-floating giant planets roaming freely in the Milky Way without a host star,” explains Hervé Bouy (Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Bordeaux), co-author of the study, in the ESO <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2120/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">press release</a>. </li> <li>The discovery of <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2117/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the closest supermassive black hole pair</a> by a team led by Karina Voggel (Strasbourg Observatory) using the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). The black holes were found in the NGC 7727 galaxy. </li> <li>The imaging of <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2114/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">42 of the largest objects</a> in the asteroid belt from a team led by French and Czech astronomers using the <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/sphere/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SPHERE</a> instrument on ESO’s <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Very Large Telescope</a> (VLT). Never before had such a large group of asteroids been imaged so sharply, revealing a wide range of <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2113/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">peculiar shapes</a>, helping astronomers trace the origins of the asteroids in our Solar System. </li> <li><a href="https://www.eso.org/public/news/eso2111/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The first clear detection of a moon-forming disc</a> around an exoplanet by Myriam Benisty (University of Grenoble and University of Chile) who led a team of researchers using <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/alma/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ALMA</a>. This discovery helps astronomers to better understand the origin of planets and moons. </li> </ul> <h2>French involvement in ESO instruments and telescopes at ESO sites </h2> <p>France has made and continues to make substantial contributions to many aspects of ESO, with French institutions behind many instruments based at telescopes on ESO sites. France is also behind some of the telescopes hosted at ESO sites. A few prominent examples of French involvement include </p> <ul> <li>The planet hunter ExTrA (Exoplanets in Transits and their Atmospheres), a French national telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory. <a href="http://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/extra/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ExTrA</a>, which saw first light in 2018, is designed to search for planets around nearby red dwarf stars and study their properties. The project, which consists of three 60-cm telescopes, is currently jointly funded by the <a href="https://erc.europa.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">European Research Council</a> and the <a href="http://www.agence-nationale-recherche.fr/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">French Agence National de la Recherche</a>. Its lead researcher is Xavier Bonfils (Institut of Planetology and Astrophysics of Grenoble, CNRS/UGA).</li> <li>Numerous instruments for ESO’s VLT Interferometer in which French institutions worked on, including <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/amber/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AMBER</a>, <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/pionier/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PIONIER</a>, <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/matisse/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MATISSE</a>, and <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/gravity/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">GRAVITY</a>.</li> <li>Several instruments on ESO’s VLT, which have had important contributions from French institutions. For example, CEA/DSM/DAPNIA (Saclay) led the development of <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/visir/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">VISIR</a>, while the Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille (Observatoire Marseille-Provence), the Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Toulouse (Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées) and the Observatoire de Haute-Provence were part of the <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/vimos/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">VIMOS</a> consortium. Many other VLT instruments, including <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/sphere/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SPHERE</a>, <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/naco/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NACO</a> and <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/vlt/vlt-instr/muse/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MUSE</a> were also developed through consortia led by French institutions.</li> <li>Through the University of Grenoble, France is part of the consortium behind ESO’s <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/announcements/ann22009/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recently installed</a> planet hunter: <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/nirps/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NIRPS</a>. The instrument sits at ESO’s <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">3.6-metre telescope</a> at <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">La Silla Observatory</a> and will characterise low-mass exoplanets, including rocky planets in the habitable zone. NIRPS will complement <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/36/harps/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HARPS</a>, which was developed by a French-Swiss consortium.</li> <li>The <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/alma/receiver-bands/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ALMA Band 7</a> receivers that were developed by the Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique (IRAM).</li> <li>France will become a member of the future CTA ERIC, the European Research Infrastructure Consortium, that will construct and operate the <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/cta/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cherenkov Telescope Array</a> (CTA). The CTA will be a ground-based observatory for very high energy gamma-ray astronomy. It will consist of two arrays of dishes, a southern-hemisphere array hosted at ESO’s <a href="https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/paranal-observatory/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Paranal Observatory</a> and a northern array on the island of La Palma, Spain. ESO will also be a member of the CTA ERIC and is represented in the <a href="https://www.cta-observatory.org/about/governance/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">council of the CTA</a>. </li> </ul> <h3>French involvement in ELT instruments </h3> <p>French institutions are part of the consortia for all of the first six instruments that will be installed on ESO’s upcoming<a href="https://elt.eso.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> Extremely Large Telescope</a> (ELT): </p> <ul> <li>The<a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/MOSAIC/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> MOSAIC</a> instrument will peer closer at distant galaxies at the very edge of the observable Universe. It is being designed and built under the leadership of the National Institute for Earth Sciences and Astronomy at the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS-INSU, France) by a consortium of partners in France and other countries. </li> <li>Five French institutions are part of the consortium behind <a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/ANDES/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ANDES</a> (previously known as HIRES), the instrument that will study astronomical objects with unprecedented sensitivity. </li> <li>The development of<a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/METIS/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> METIS</a>, the Mid-infrared ELT Imager and Spectrograph is done by a consortium of many European countries, including France through the <a href="https://www.cea.fr/pages/le-cea/les-centres-cea/paris-saclay.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CEA Paris Saclay Research Centre</a>. </li> <li><a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/MAORY/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MORFEO</a> (previously known as MAORY) will enable other ELT instruments to take exceptional images of the Universe. France participates through the Grenoble Institute for Planetary Sciences and Astrophysics. </li> <li>The <a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/MICADO/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MICADO</a> instrument will take high-resolution images at near-infrared wavelengths, identifying exoplanets, resolving individual stars in other galaxies and investigating the mysterious centre of the Milky Way. A number of French institutes are part of the consortium.</li> <li>The<a href="https://elt.eso.org/instrument/HARMONI/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> HARMONI</a> instrument is developed by a collaboration between France, Spain and the United Kingdom. HARMONI will have a sensitivity that is up to hundreds of times better than any current instrument of its kind. </li> </ul> <h2>French industry and technology contributions to ESO </h2> <p>As one of the founding ESO Member States and a country with one of the more significant contributions to the ESO budget, French institutions and industry have been awarded several important ESO contracts over the years. Some of France’s most significant technological contributions to ESO projects include </p> <ul> <li>The Paranal instrumentation adaptive optics systems which were developed and produced by French company ONERA. </li> <li>Winlight System SA which produced cameras for the ESPRESSO instrument </li> <li>French company ALPAO which supplied all the deformable mirrors to equip the auxiliary telescopes that form part of ESO’s VLT Interferometer. </li> <li>The Observatoire de Bordeaux which was awarded multiple contracts to produce the digitizer and tunable filter bank card production for ALMA. </li> <li>Alcatel Space Industries which developed prototype antennas for ALMA, while the AEM Consortium developed the European ALMA antennas. </li> </ul> <h3>French industry contributions to the ELT </h3> <p>French companies have been key industrial partners of ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope. A few of the most significant contracts awarded to French industry include </p> <ul> <li>Safran Reosc SAS which was awarded multiple contracts related to the ELT M1 segments polishing, ELT M2, M3 and M5 mirrors and auxiliary equipment, and the ELT M4 mirror shells. </li> <li>SAGEM SA which was awarded multiple contracts related to the procurement of ELT primary mirror segment prototypes. </li> <li>CILAS S.A. - Compagnie which conducted the design study for ELT M4 adaptive unit.</li> <li>FIRST LIGHT IMAGING S.A.S. which provided the C-RED One Cameras for the ELT. </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>  <div class="row footernote"> <div class="col-xs-12 col-md-3"> <a href="mailto:information@eso.org">Send us your comments!</a> </div> <div class="col-xs-12 col-md-3"> <a href="/public/outreach/newsletters/esonews/">Subscribe to receive news from ESO in your language</a> </div> <div class="col-xs-12 col-md-3"> <a href="https://www.cdn77.com">Accelerated by CDN77</a> </div> <div class="col-xs-12 col-md-3"> <a href="/public/about-eso/privacy/">Terms & Conditions</a> </div> </div> <link href="/public/archives/djp/css/extras.d3e54451ebbb.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> <script type="text/javascript">var MEDIA_URL = "/public/archives/"</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/public/archives/djp/js/main.86aaf133ddd1.js" charset="utf-8"></script> </div>  <div id="social-share" class="hidden-print"> <div class="link facebook" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="Share on Facebook"> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/memberstates/frenchinvolvement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i class="fa-brands fa-facebook-f" aria-hidden="true"></i></a> </div> <div class="link twitter" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="Share on X/Twitter"> <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/memberstates/frenchinvolvement/&text=French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory&via=ESO" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i class="fa-brands fa-x-twitter"></i></i></a> </div> <div class="link pinterest" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="Share on Pinterest"> <a href="https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/memberstates/frenchinvolvement/&media=&description=French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i class="fa-brands fa-pinterest-p" aria-hidden="true"></i></a> </div> <div class="link print" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="Print"> <a href="javascript:window.print()" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i class="fa fa-print" aria-hidden="true"></i></a> </div> <div class="link email" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="Share by email"> <a href="mailto:%20?subject=ESO — French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory&body=https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/memberstates/frenchinvolvement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i class="fa-regular fa-envelope" aria-hidden="true"></i></a> </div> </div> <script> $('[data-toggle="tooltip"]').tooltip(); </script> <input type='hidden' name='csrfmiddlewaretoken' value='Ew2SgL0lMzb4eh8EfqUVD8TuegUyEMw9jCwMulq9RV3iOMCb42kI1LiEgFVBIgCV' /> </body> </html>

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French Involvement with the European Southern Observatory | ESO