News

This section includes scientific and technological news from the IAC and its Observatories, as well as press releases on scientific and technological results, astronomical events, educational projects, outreach activities and institutional events.

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  • Electronic board developed by the IAC for the PLATO mission, displayed alongside other technological components in the exhibition ‘In search of new Earths’.
    Press release
    The IAC participates in the exhibition ‘In search of new Earths’ on the European space mission PLATO
    The exhibition, opened at the Museo de las Ciencias de Castilla-La Mancha, brings the search for Earth-like planets closer to the public and displays technological components developed by Spanish centres involved in the mission. The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) is participating in the temporary exhibition ‘In search of new Earths’, a display dedicated to the European space mission PLATO and to one of the major challenges in astrophysics today: the search for and characterisation of habitable Earth-like planets beyond the Solar System. The exhibition, which can be visited until
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  • Valentín Martínez Pillet, Director of the IAC, speaks during the press conference presenting the NATE educational programme on the August eclipse in Palencia.
    General
    The “NATE” educational program on the August eclipse was presented in Palencia
    The Plenary Hall of the Palencia City Council hosted the presentation of the program of events surrounding the upcoming eclipse. This ambitious program of educational and artistic events was presented by the mayor of Palencia, Miriam Andrés Prieto; the director of the Canary Islands Institute of Astrophysics (IAC), Valentín Martínez Pillet; the councilor for Cultural Identity, Tourism, and Festivals, Francisco Fernández Asensio; and the deputy director of the IAC, Eva Villaver, a native of Palencia. In anticipation of the upcoming eclipse on August 12, Palencia will become Spain’s scientific
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  • Poster for the talk “Cosmology: the nightmare of contemporary Physics?”, featuring an image of Julio Navarro against a background of galaxies and event information: Friday 10 July, 17:00, Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos.
    Press release
    Cosmologist Julio Navarro to give a public talk on the major challenges of modern Physics
    The renowned researcher, invited by the IAC as part of the Fundación Occident Visiting Researchers programme, will analyse the unresolved questions that still surround the origin and evolution of the Universe. On 10 July, at 17:00, the Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos will host the public lecture “Cosmology: the nightmare of contemporary Physics?”, delivered by the distinguished astronomer and cosmologist Julio Navarro, Professor at the University of Victoria, in Canada. The event forms part of his stay at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) within the Fundación Occident Visiting
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  • wavefront_sensor
    Research news
    Photonic integrated circuits for astronomy: A formal description of an integrated photonics-based wavefront sensor (IP-WFS)
    Solar wavefront sensing has been a challenge for astrophysical instrumentalists, due to the low contrast between the Sun and the sky background compared to night-time observations, which limits the performance of adaptive optics systems. Wavefront correction in solar physics requires the analysis of extended images; meanwhile, at night the displacement of a punctual object is analysed. This technique limits the spatial resolution, and therefore the accuracy in the wavefront reconstruction. To solve this problem, a new method of direct wavefront sensing without the need for image formation
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  • Valentín Martínez Pillet, Director of the IAC, speaks during the opening of the course on astrophysics and the space sector held at IACTEC.
    The IAC and the ULL promote a summer course on astrophysics and the space sector in collaboration with the Universidad Complutense de Madrid
    The free-registration initiative brings together specialists from research centres, universities, institutions and companies at IACTEC on 2 and 3 July to address the role of astrophysics as a scientific, technological and economic driver. The IACTEC building, located in the Las Mantecas Technology Park in La Laguna, is hosting from today until tomorrow, 3 July, the course "Astrophysics as a science and driver of economic development". The initiative forms part of the Summer Courses of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in San Lorenzo de El Escorial and, for the first time, is being
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  • IAC Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias EAS2026
    The IAC presents its latest scientific advances at Europe’s leading astronomy meeting
    Scientific staff from the Institute will present around thirty scientific contributions, including eight invited talks, at the annual meeting of the European Astronomical Society (EAS) The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) is taking part this week in the annual meeting of the European Astronomical Society (EAS 2026), the largest European conference dedicated to astronomy and astrophysics, which is being held from 29 June to 3 July at the SwissTech Convention Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland. The event brings together thousands of specialists, approximately 1,400 participants
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