image: Rafael Rebolo, director of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), and Gang Zhao, general deputy director of the NAOC, after the signing of the memorandum. In the center, Romano Corradi, deputy director of the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC), and members of the Chinese delegation at NAOC. view more
Credit: NAOC.
Between 9th and 11th of May, the director of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Rafael Rebolo, and the Deputy Director of the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC), Romano Corradi, visited the NAOC (National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy Science), in Beijing.
During this visit, the IAC and the NAOC signed a memorandum of scientific and technical cooperation to push forward the joint development of instruments for large, and extremely large telescopes in the optical and infrared ranges, among them the Gran Telescopio CNARIAS (GTC), as well as joint projects for training and interchange of scientific and technical personnel. In this memorandum, LAMOST (Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fibre Spectroscopic Telescope) and the GTC is especially mentioned, including future observations of interesting objects selected by LAMOST.
The IAC and the NAOC are also collaborating in SONG (The Stellar Observations Network Group), which at the present time comprises a Danish telescope -Hertzsprung SONG telescope- at the Teide Observatory, in Tenerife, and a similar Chinese telescope at the Delingha Observatory, in Qinghai (China). These two 1 metre telescopes are observing variable objetcs.
Rebolo and Corradi also visited the Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics & Technology (NIAOT), where they had discussions about collaboration in the field of astronomical technology and instrument development.
This follow-up visit comes after the one done by the Secretary of State for R+R+I, Carmen Vela, who led a delegation to the NAOC on October 26th 2015 during a working meeting of the Joint Spanish-Chinese Science and Technology Commission. This visit was coordinated and supported by the Chinese Embassy in Spain, Minstry of Science and Technolgy of China and the Chinese Academy of Science as well.
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