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European Radio Astronomy ConsortiumNewsletter Issue 11/2025
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An international team led by Tom Bakx (Chalmers University) has identified an extreme star-forming galaxy, Y1, over 13 billion light-years away. Using ALMA, they measured dust temperatures of 90 K, revealing that Y1 is forming stars at over 180 solar masses per year, about 180 times faster than the Milky Way. This discovery provides key insights into how galaxies grew rapidly in the early universe and may help explain the unexpectedly high dust content observed in young galaxies. Such “superheated” star factories could have been common in the first billion years after the Big Bang. Read the study: DOI: 10.1093/mnras/staf1714 Read the full Chalmers press release. .Image: Glowing deep red from the distant past: galaxy Y1 shines thanks to dust grains heated by newly-formed stars (circled in this image from the James Webb telescope). Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, J. Diego (Instituto de Física de Cantabria, Spain), J. D’Silva (U. Western Australia), A. Koekemoer (STScI), J. Summers & R. Windhorst (ASU), and H. Yan (U. Missouri) |
An international team led by Dr. Dana Alina (Nazarbayev University) has revealed the magnetic field structure of the striking ring-like molecular cloud G111, near the NGC7538 star-forming region. Using high-sensitivity observations from the IRAM 30-meter telescope combined with data from other facilities, the team applied the Velocity Gradients Technique to map how magnetic forces shaped the cloud. The study shows an ordered magnetic structure following the cloud’s curvature, suggesting that magnetism played a key role in preserving the ring’s shape, possibly resulting from a past supernova, strong stellar winds, or large-scale interactions. This work highlights the power of combining multiple observational techniques to study magnetic fields in star-forming regions. The full study is published in The Astronomical Journal: Link to publication
Read the full IRAM press release. Image: ESA/Herschel/PACS/SPIRE. Acknowledgements: Cassie Fallscheer (University of Victoria), Mike Reid (University of Toronto) and the Herschel HOBYS team. |
An international team led by ASTRON and the Observatoire de Paris-PSL has observed the first definitive radio signal of a coronal mass ejection (CME) from a star beyond our Solar System. The eruption was detected from a nearby red dwarf star just 130 light-years away using the LOFAR radio telescope. Such stellar storms, similar to CMEs on the Sun, could have devastating effects on any orbiting planets, stripping away atmospheric protection and affecting habitability. This discovery provides the first direct evidence of extreme space weather around other stars and highlights the challenges for planets orbiting common red dwarf stars. The finding was made during the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey and is published in Nature: DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09715-3 Read the full ASTRON press release. Image: This artist’s impression shows a coronal mass ejection, or CME, around a nearby star. During a CME, massive amounts of material are flung out from our star, flooding the surrounding space. These dramatic expulsions shape and drive space weather, such as the dazzling auroras we see on Earth, and can chip away at the atmospheres of any nearby planets. Astronomers using the LOFAR radio telescope have now definitively spotted a CME around another star for the first time. The explosive burst of material would be powerful enough to have a devastating impact on the atmosphere of any unlucky planet in its path. (Credit: Olena Shmahalo/Callingham et al.) |
Keith Grainge has been appointed as Director of Jodrell Bank Observatory and the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics for a three-year term beginning 1 January 2026. He succeeds Mike Garrett, who has served in this role for close to ten years. Mike has been a central figure in RadioNet, serving as coordinator and leading partner, and has played a key role in strengthening RadioNet’s visibility and recognition. RadioNet expresses sincere gratitude for his many years of commitment and engagement, and wishes him every success during his sabbatical as he continues his work with Breakthrough Listen. At the same time, RadioNet warmly welcomes Keith into his new position and looks forward to the continued and future engagement of Jodrell Bank Observatory and the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics in shaping the direction of European radio astronomy. Images: Copyright © 2025 Research Explorer The University of Manchester |
The European VLBI Network (EVN) is announced a new seminar within the 3rd series of online seminars “Exploring the sharpest view of the Universe with the EVN”. Sandor Frey from Konkoly Observatory, HUN-REN Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, will present a talk about VLBI and Gaia Astrometry in the Service of AGN Astrophysics. Join on Friday 5 December 2025 – 11:00 CET. Find more at the EVN page. |
Germany has awarded a €10.7 million contract to OHB Digital Connect to supply 86 high-frequency receivers for the SKA-Mid radio telescope in South Africa. Signed on 29 October 2025 in Berlin during the launch of Germany’s High-tech Agenda, the contract marks Germany’s first SKAO project since joining the Observatory last year. Contributions from the MPIfR and German Centre for Astrophysics support the delivery. Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär highlighted the collaboration as a boost to Germany’s and Europe’s technological leadership in radio astronomy. Find more in MPIfR Press release. Image: Signing of the SKAO construction contract on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, in Berlin by Simon Berry (SKAO), Dennis Winkelmann (OHB Digital Connect), and Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär. In the background: Stefan Wagner (DZA, second from left) and Michael Kramer (MPIfR, third from left). © BMFTR/Hans-Joachim Rickel. |
France has secured its first SKAO construction contract, with computing specialists Eviden (part of Atos Group) tasked with delivering the Science Data Processor (SDP) hardware for the Observatory’s two telescopes. The SDP will handle massive data volumes, reducing and processing up to a million 4K-equivalent streams to produce detailed sky images, ultimately archiving ~700 PB annually. Initial hardware deployments are planned in Australia and South Africa in 2026. The contract highlights France’s leading role in high-performance computing for SKAO and its contribution to this global project. Read the SKAO press release. Image: (L-R) Emmanuel Le Roux, Head Advanced Computing and AI at Eviden, and Dr Simon Berry, SKAO Deputy-Director General, at the contract signing ceremony in Paris on 14 November (C) SKAO |
The 11th newsletter of the Atacama Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (AtLAST) project is now available. With the EU-funded design study completed, the project has entered its second phase (AtLAST2), supported by a new EU infrastructure grant, focusing on consolidating plans for the next-generation observatory. Read the AtLAST newsletter. Image (C) AtLAST. |
Explore upcoming training events, and organizer resources - plus past events and training material. |
The next ERIS - European Radio Astronomy School will be hosted by INAF Institute of Radioastronomy (IRA-INAF, Italy) from 7–11 September 2026 in Noto, Sicily. Mark your calendars - further details will follow. |
ESO announced that the 2026 European ALMA School will be hosted by the Allegro ARC node in Leiden, Netherlands, from 26–30 January 2026. The program will cover topics from interferometry basics to advanced data analysis and future ALMA developments, and is open to both beginners and experienced users. The event also includes a tour of Leiden Observatory. Registration here. |
ESA invites applications for the Archival Research Visitor Programme, offering researchers from ESA Member and Cooperating States the chance to conduct studies using ESA Space Science Archives.
Visits (1–3 months) take place at ESAC or ESTEC, with travel, lodging, and meals covered. Early-career scientists and students are especially encouraged to apply. More information on the ESA website. |
The 3rd CTAO School, organized with the MAGIC Collaboration through the ACME Project, will be held in La Palma, Spain (12–22 May 2026), offering hands-on training in VHE astrophysics, data analysis, and observations with the LST-1 and MAGIC Telescopes. More information and the application form are available on the CTAO School website. |
The European ALMA Regional Centre (ARC) provides the interface between the ALMA project and the European science community. The ARC is staffed by scientists with expertise in radio astronomy and interferometry and it supports its users throughout the lifetime of a project, from proposal preparation to data analysis. |
ALTA offers to the world-wide astronomical community free virtual access to data and scientific products produced from all sky surveys of the Northern sky that will be conducted with the new Apertif frontend of the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT), as well as tools to query, further exploit and perform data mining of these products adaptable to diverse research goals. . |
LTA is a long-established archive and access facility supporting the international LOFAR telescope. It is currently the largest radio astronomical archive in the world already exceeding 45 PB from LOFAR’s past 10 years of operations. The LTA provides a central and key resource for all observed LOFAR astronomical science programs where the data become public within 12 months of first creation. |
Online platform for virtual access to multi-messenger observatories, data analysis, and theoretical interpretation. Services are provided through ACME’s six Joint Centres of Expertise covering Gamma-rays, Gravitational Waves, Neutrinos & Cosmic Rays, Optical & NIR, Radio, and X-rays. Registration is open to all users. |
Transnational access to MAGIC is provided to selected user-groups of one or more researchers, with the majority of the users working in EU and/or Associated Countries AND NOT AFFILIATED WITH SPANISH INSTITUTES. Find detailed information for the proposal submission preparation here. The submission deadline is January 23, 2026 at 23:59 UT. |
POLICY NEWSAt the recent Research Security Flagship Conference in Brussels, the European Commission announced new measures, including a future ERA legal act, a European Competence Centre, a due-diligence platform for collaborations, and shared resilience testing methods, to protect academic freedom and strengthen secure research practices in the EU. Read more The European Commission has published a study examining the legal and practical protection of research freedom across EU Member States and selected comparison countries. The findings highlight inconsistent legal definitions, risks from political and societal pressures, and the negative impact of precarious employment conditions, especially temporary contracts, on scientific independence. The results will inform the Commission’s impact assessment for strengthened EU-level safeguards, expected to feed into the ERA Act planned for Q3 2026. Read the report. On 22 October 2025, Egypt signed an association agreement with the European Commission, becoming after Tunisia the second African country fully associated with Horizon Europe. Egyptian institutions can now participate in all calls under the same conditions as EU member states, including initiating projects, receiving funding directly, and coordinating consortia. Read more. On 10 November 2025, Switzerland and the European Commission signed an agreement making Switzerland fully associated to Horizon Europe, retroactive to 1 January 2025. Swiss institutions can now participate as beneficiaries in all parts of the programme and receive direct EU funding, including retroactive support for 2025 projects. The agreement also covers Digital Europe and Euratom Research & Training, with Swiss participation in ITER expected from 2026 and Erasmus+ from 2027. Read more. On 23 October 2025 in Brussels, the European Commission and the African Academy of Sciences signed a new agreement enabling AAS-supported researchers to temporarily join teams led by ERC grantees in Europe. The initiative builds on the ARISE pilot programme and supports deeper cooperation in frontier research between the EU and the African Union. Read more. The European Commission has launched a consultation (open until 23 Jan 2026) to gather evidence and stakeholder views on challenges affecting the European Research Area and potential EU-level solutions. The call targets a wide range of participants, from research institutions and universities to businesses, infrastructures, policymakers, and citizens, and supports responses in all official EU languages. The results will feed into future legislative proposals to strengthen research and innovation in Europe. Have your say here. The European Commission invites stakeholders to participate in a survey on the new access charter for industry to research and technology infrastructures. This initiative, part of the EU Start-up and Scale-up Strategy, aims to strengthen cooperation with industrial users and enhance the contribution of infrastructures to the EU’s competitiveness. The survey is open until 10 December 2025. |
• UN/SKAO Workshop on Dark and Quiet Skies for Science and Society on December 9, 2025
• The 2026 European ALMA School on January 26, 2026
• Unveiling ALMA Band 2 workshop on February 24, 2026
• BlackHolistic 2026: black hole accretion and how it shapes the cosmos on March 23, 2026
• CTAO School 2026 on May 12, 2026
• EAS 2026 on June 29, 2026
• SPIE on July 5, 2026
• COSPAR 2026 on August 1, 2026
• Annual Meeting of the German Astronomical Society 2026 on September 7, 2026
• ERIS 2026 on 7-11 September 2026
• EVN Symposium 2026 on September 14, 2026
See also the Calendar
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RadioNet - European Radio Astronomy Consortium
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