From: <Chris.Phillips_at_email.protected>
Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2019 23:13:30 +0000

Dear colleagues,

Please mark the dates of the SKA-VLBI KSP workshop in your calendar!

Note: please do not confuse this with the main SKA KSP Workshop in
April 2019 in Jodrell Bank!
Our workshop will focus on very long baseline interferometry with the SKA.
The second announcement with more details is expected in early 2019.


SKA-VLBI Key Science Projects and Operations Workshop
14-17 October 2019, Jodrell Bank, United Kingdom
=====================================================

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will deploy its first phase
telescopes in the mid-2020s. SKA1-LOW (50-350 MHz) and SKA1-MID
(0.35-15.3[24.0] GHz) will have maximum baseline lengths of about 65
km and 150 km, respectively. Some of the highest priority science
objectives defined by the SKA Organisation - together with the science
working groups - however require an angular resolution that can only
be reached by current very long baseline interferometry (VLBI)
networks, or the full SKA with baselines extending to thousands of km.
To exploit the full potentials of the first phase SKA components for
very high resolution applications, it has been proposed to coherently
phase-up the core of SKA1-LOW and SKA1-MID, and make these powerful
telescopes available for global VLBI observations.

In the past 50+ years the VLBI technique has provided the highest
angular resolution imaging application in observing astronomy. It
provided means to measure apparent superluminal motion in highly
relativistic jets from active galactic nuclei (AGN) some 40 years ago,
while today we can directly observe the impact of these jets to the
neutral and molecular interstellar medium as they drive powerful
large-scale outflows - an important form of AGN feedback that shapes
galaxies. The superior relative astrometric capabilities allowed us to
measure accurate distances and proper motions well before the Gaia
era, which helped us to better understand stellar birth and stellar
evolution, as well as the structure of the Milky Way. Absolute
astrometry with VLBI allows us to measure Earth Orientation Parameters
and UT1, and may be used for cosmological studies. In the field of
transient science, VLBI has provided the first clue that Nova ejecta
can be highly asymmetric, it made possible to resolve
(mildly)-relativistic ejecta from Tidal Disruption Events, and
provided the tightest constraints on the position of the first ever
localised fast radio burst FRB121102.

The aim of the workshop is to introduce the VLBI capabilities and
observing modes of the SKA to the community, and present the latest
results in the SKA high priority science areas where VLBI will make an
impact. We will discuss ideas and possible strategies for major
SKA-VLBI Key Science observing programmes, and the impact of global
VLBI observations for astronomical research in the future in general.
In addition, we will seek input regarding the SKA-VLBI requirements
for the future SKA regional Data Science Centres.


Scientific Organising Committee
===============================

Laura Spitler, MPIfR-Bonn, Germany
Kazi Rygl, INFA-IRA, Italy
Michael Rupen, HAA-NRC, Canada
Maria Rioja, ICRAR-UWA/CSIRO, Australia; OAN, Spain
Chris Phillips, CSIRO, Australia
Mar Mezcua, ICE/CSIC, Spain
Preeti Kharb, NCRA-TIFR, India
Hiroshi Imai, U. Kagoshima, Japan
Roger Deane, U. Pretoria, South Africa
John Conway, OSO-Chalmers U., Sweden
Paco Colomer, JIVE, Netherlands
Anna Bonaldi, SKAO, United Kingdom
Tao An, ShAO, China

Antonio Chrysostomou, SKAO, United Kingdom (co-Chair)
Zsolt Paragi, JIVE, Netherlands (co-Chair)


Local Organising Committee
==========================

Antonio Chrysostomou, SKAO (Chair)
Cristina Garcia Miro, SKAO
Joe Diamond, SKAO
Sarah Lamb, SKAO
Robert Beswick, JBCA-U. Manchester
Received on 2019-01-29 10:13:31