Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania

Astronomical Observations & Optical Communication through Atmospheric Turbulence
2023-12-01 11:30 - 12:30 UTC | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Friday, December 1, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Aziz Ziad (Université Côte d’Azur)
ABSTRACT:The atmospheric parameters have a strong impact on the image formation through the atmosphere. Indeed, the effect of atmospheric turbulence on wavefronts reduces severely the resolution of ground-based astronomical observations. Thus, in the context of astronomical observations, the site-selection has now become essential with the advent of the next generation of Extremely Large Telescopes (ELT). Indeed, it is important to choose sites with reduced cloud coverage, weak turbulence and low aerosol distribution in order to enhance observations time and to improve their scientific performance. It is also important to remember that the choice of sites hosting astronomical projects must meet very strict criteria in terms of optical quality. Future optical communications and telemetry stations will be forced to meet the same requirements.
Beyond Site-Testing and Site-Selection for Astronomical Observations or Optical Communications, precise knowledge of atmospheric turbulence parameters is of interest for the technical specifications of the Adaptive Optics (AO) systems dedicated to real-time correction of the atmospheric turbulence. In addition, the CN2(h) profiles (as well as wind and outer scale profiles) with high vertical resolution is necessary for a better evaluation of the performance of AO systems. A large number of monitors have been developed for this purpose, particularly with the emergence of ELT projects, but very few meet the required need. Recently, a new station has been developed in the framework of a European consortium and a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA). This ANAtOLIA station is a compact mobile high-performance station, equipped with the most performing instruments leading to the whole atmospheric parameters.
ANATOLIA is a ESA funded project aimed to study, among other topics, the effects of aerosols and atmospheric turbulence on optical communication. Master students in Physics, Engineering, Geology are solicited to attend if interested to conduct research on (one/more) topic(s) in optical communication (internship and PhD level).
A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Space-Weathering on Primitive Asteroids
2023-12-06 11:30 - 12:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Wednesday, December 6, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Stefano Rubino (INAF-IAPS)
ABSTRACT:Studying small bodies in our solar system is fundamental for understanding its youth and evolution. These small “primitive” bodies are “undifferentiated” (they did not undergo phase density separation, irreversibly altering their mineralogy). They have evolved little since their creation, spurring a composition relatively close to the primordial proto-planetary disk. However, other processes, such as thermal alteration, aqueous alteration, shocks, or space-weathering, can affect these bodies’ surfaces. This issue is because remote-sensed data acquired while studying these bodies target these surfaces. If these surfaces have been altered, they can induce a particular bias in the study of the composition of these small bodies. Therefore, it is paramount to understand the processes affecting the surface of primitive asteroids to assess their composition correctly.There are several ways to study the surface of primitive asteroids, such as remotely, from the Earth or a satellite orbiting the body of interest, by acquiring spectroscopic data (gaining access to surface chemical and mineralogical composition). It is also possible to study these bodies in a laboratory environment by working on analogous materials, such as certain classes of “primitive” meteorites (carbonaceous chondrites), on terrestrial analogs (simpler to study than meteorites but less closely related to extraterrestrial materials), or directly on extraterrestrial materials brought back by sample return missions.In this work, we replicate the effects of space weathering (SpWe) on the surface of primitive asteroids in a laboratory environment. More specifically, we focus on the effects of solar wind, the dominant SpWe process on “young” surfaces of the solar system. We have chosen three terrestrial minerals analogous to a “primitive” surface – three hydrated minerals (two serpentines and one saponite) – of which we have produced several pellets which have been bombarded using He and Ar ions, to investigate the effects of two different solar wind. In doing so, we made analogous materials of weathered primitive surface matter.These analogs were then characterized by infrared spectroscopy, from the visible to the far-infrared range, to study chemical changes prompted by ion bombardment. This was done by investigating how certain spectroscopic features – characteristic of hydrated silicates – changed upon ion bombardment. We detected several effects, such as darkening in the visible range, visible slope reddening and bluing, and a systematic shift towards longer wavelength affecting the position of several spectroscopic features.This spectroscopic characterization was followed by a study at a smaller scale using electron microscopy. We first characterized the surface of our weathered analogs using scanning electron microscopy. Then, we investigated the morphological and physicochemical changes in the bombarded layer, at a nanometer scale using transmission electron microscopy. Strong vesiculation effects of various kinds were identified in the ion-bombarded amorphized layers, textural changes, and some elemental concentration evolution (such as the loss of oxygen in the utmost top surfaces, preferential amorphization of magnesium, etc.). The coupling between these two techniques, IR spectroscopy, and electron microscopy acting at different scales, has allowed for a better understanding of SpWe effects on primitive bodies and will be able to support current and future studies of primitive bodies, whether they are carried out remotely or in a laboratory environment on returned samples.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

The Gravitational-Wave breakthrough we can('t) wait for
2023-12-18 11:30 - 12:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, December 18, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Gianluca Pagliaro (Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics, AEI Hannover)
ABSTRACT:Less than a decade after the first historical Gravitational Wave (GW) detection GW150914, the field of GW astronomy has grown at a phenomenal pace, going from less than an event per month, to the currently observed rate of few events a week.Despite the exceptional contributions the field has brought to fundamental physics, astronomy, cosmology, computational physics as well as the unavoidable collateral progress in fields related to the experimental development of GW detectors, the picture is anything but complete.Amongst the missing pieces of the puzzle we find Continuous Gravitational Waves (CGWs). In this seminar I am going to talk about CGWs, what are they and what astrophysical sources and mechanisms can produce them, with a particular focus on non-axisymmetric spinning Neutron Stars. I will also briefly discuss the different search implementations, what is done, or can be done, to increase our chances to arrive to what is probably going to be the next breakthrough in GW Astronomy, the first CGW detection, including a discussion about prospects in view of future observation runs as well as GW detectors operational in the close future.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

The contribution of laboratory experiments in the study of organic matter in Solar-system bodies
2024-01-22 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, January 22, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Riccardo Giovanni Urso (INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania)
ABSTRACT:Organic matter is revealed in a variety of extraterrestrial bodies, including comets, asteroids, satellites, and trans-Neptunian objects. On atmosphere-less surfaces, organics are detected in the visible and near-infrared thanks to observations performed with the instruments on-board space probes and telescopes. Further information on the properties of organics comes from the analysis of meteorites, interplanetary dust particles, and unique samples collected on comets and asteroids during dedicated space missions.
Understanding the properties of organic matter present in small bodies would allow us to shed light on processes that happened at the dawn of the Solar System, when these objects formed by the aggregation of the materials available in the protoplanetary disk. However, since their formation, atmosphere-less surfaces were continuously exposed to energetic photons, solar particles, and cosmic rays that cause the alteration of organics, hindering to draw firm conclusions on their pristine composition and origin.
With the aim to support the interpretation of recent remote sensing observations and the analysis of extraterrestrial samples, we performed laboratory experiments to study the spectral properties of organics revealed in Solar System bodies, to shed light on the alteration induced by energetic charged particles, and to suggest possible pathways for the organics’ formation thanks to processes that involved molecular precursors already available in the pre-solar cloud.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

RU Lup: the accretion environment of a prototypical Classical T Tauri star
2024-01-30 11:30 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Tuesday, January 30, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Antonio Armeni (Tuebingen University)
ABSTRACT:
While it is well established that Classical T Tauri stars accrete material from a circumstellar disk through magnetic fields, the physics regulating the processes in the inner (0.1 AU) disk is still not well understood. With its long observational history and its rich emission line spectrum, RU Lup is a prime example to study this environment.
RU Lup is a monitoring target within the ULLYSES survey for Classical T Tauri stars. Optical spectroscopic observations with CHIRON and ESPRESSO were obtained simultaneously with the two epochs of the ULLYSES monitoring program for RU Lup.
In this talk, I will discuss the main results obtained by analyzing this collection of data, supplemented by the two TESS observations and the archival AAVSO photometry of RU Lup.Using the high resolution ESPRESSO spectra, we improved the measurements of the stellar parameters, especially the projected rotational velocity (vsini).We determined the veiling fraction for the ESPRESSO spectra, showing that the veiling consists of two components: a continuum emission likely originating in the accretion shock and line emission that fills in the photospheric absorption lines.We detected a periodic modulation in the narrow component (NC) of the He I 5876 line with a period that is compatible with the stellar rotation period, indicating the presence of a compact region on the stellar surface that we identified as the footprint of the accretion shock. Although the brightness of RU Lup changed drastically both on daily and yearly timescales, this region is overall stable over the 3 years covered by the observations.An analysis of the high-cadence TESS light curves revealed quasi-periodic oscillations (QPO) on timescales shorter than the stellar rotation period. This suggests that the accretion disk in RU Lup extends inward of the corotation radius and the star accretes through a magnetic boundary layer (MBL). The rich metallic emission line spectrum of RU Lup might be characteristic of this accretion regime.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Meet "LE" Researchers - IX Giornata delle donne e delle ragazze nella scienza
2024-02-11 10:30 - 12:30 | Città della Scienza, via Simeto 23, Catania, Italia
DATA: Domenica, 11 Febbraio, ore 10.30 – 12.30
LUOGO: Città della Scienza – Via Simeto 23, Catania
Domenica 11 Febbraio si celebra la IX Giornata internazionale delle donne e delle ragazze nella scienza.Il Centro Siciliano di Fisica Nucleare e di Struttura della Materia in collaborazione con l’Università di Catania, l’INAF Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania e l’INFN Sezione di Catania, organizzano l’evento 𝐌𝐞𝐞𝐭 “𝐋𝐄” 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 per raccontare e soprattutto far vedere dal vivo cosa fanno le ricercatrici delle materie STEM a Catania.
Due ore in cui potrete scoprire esperimenti e dimostrazioni di biologia, chimica, fisica, geologia, intelligenza artificiale e tanto altro. Insieme ad un nutrito gruppo di ricercatrici catanesi osserverete la sabbia al microscopio, scoprirete come la chimica possa servire nella lotta contro il cancro, osserverete il sole con un telescopio, farete un viaggio negli abissi a caccia di neutrini e, ancora, scoprirete come l’intelligenza artificiale permetta di riconoscere alimenti e rifiuti, come sia possibile osservare le particelle che provengono dal cosmo, come riconoscere le gemme, come la fisica vi possa aiutare a proteggere l’ambiente che ci circonda. Esperimenti e dimostrazioni tutti al femminile per conoscere il ruolo delle donne e delle ragazze nella scienza!
L’evento ha ottenuto il logo ufficiale dell’ International Day Of Women And Girls In Science patrocinata dall’Unesco e promossa dalla Royal Academy of Science International Trust (RASIT).

Leggi l’articolo pubblicato da La Tecnica della Scuola: Giornata delle donne e delle ragazze nella scienza, esperimenti e dimostrazioni dal vivo curate da ricercatrici catanesi: l’evento

Investigating the link between protoplanets, disk substructures and disk winds
2024-02-12 11:30 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, February 12, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Justyn Campbell-White (ESO-Garching)
ABSTRACT:
Protoplanetary disks are now routinely observed around young stars but the planets they produce remain elusive to detect. So far, we have only one confirmed direct detection of protoplanets in the disk of PDS 70, with some tentative results (e.g. AB Aur). Yet disk structures are found almost ubiquitously across the sample of resolved disks. We are investigating the potential relationship between inner disk winds and outflows (traced by optical emission lines, such as [OI]), and the presence and type of disk substructures. We aim to determine whether or not the various substructures are the direct results of protoplanet formation.
I will present new results from recent and archival observations of PDS 70. In order to investigate such connections between winds, substructures and planets, we turn to the one system where we have certainly detected the planets. We have carefully applied established techniques to the high-resolution spectra to reveal previously unseen forbidden emission profiles. These results suggest a significant wind originating from the inner disk. We compare these results and measurements of the mass accretion rate and disk properties to those of other weakly accreting young stars and those with transition disks.
We are also carrying out this investigation for the PENELLOPE/ULLYSES sample of ~80 young stars. This complements existing surveys of such winds/outflows, whilst allowing for further exploration of the relation to disk substructures, towards a more complete statistical survey.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Osservazione della luna
2024-03-11 17:30 - 20:00
Il Centro Islamico Culturale d’Italia – Grande Moschea di Roma in collaborazione con l’Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica e l’Unione Astrofili Italiana e con la partecipazione della Confederazione Islamica Italiana e con la rete Pakistana Dawate Islami in Italia organizzano l’evento “Osservazione della luna per l’inizio del mese di Ramadan 1445 AH”.

Un incontro dedicato all’avvistamento, eventualmente assistito con strumentazione astronomica, della Luna Nuova di Ramadan. Questo incontro si svolgerà in via telematica mediante la piattaforma ZOOM e in presenza per piccole delegazioni di Imam in alcune sedi INAF e UAI. Le osservazioni verranno trasmesse anche in streaming via streaming sul canale Facebook della Grande Moschea di Roma.

Programma
17:45 – Saluti delle autoritàDott. Abdellah Redouane, Segretario Generale del Centro Islamico Culturale d’Italia “La Grande Moschea di Roma”Caterina Boccato, INAF Struttura di Presidenza per la ComunicazionePaolo Morini, Unione Astrofili Italiana, delegazione di Ravenna
18:00 – Collegamenti in sequenza dipendentemente dall’orario di tramonto del Sole e Luna: Catania, Salerno, Ragusa, Palermo, Savignano sul Rubicone (FC), Ravenna, Roma, Padova, Bologna, Piombino (LI), Cagliari (NB: i collegamenti dipenderanno dal tempo atmosferico)
19:30 – Conclusione e analisi delle osservazioni e saluti

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Moderano:Federico Di Giacomo – INAF Imam Dr. Nader Akkad – commissione scientifica per l’avvistamento lunare della Grande Moschea di Roma

Unlocking Cosmic Origins: LiteBIRD's quest for Inflationary GWs
2024-04-15 10:00 - 11:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, April 15, 10:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Avinash Anand (Department of Physics, University of Rome, Tor Vergata)
ABSTRACT:
The LiteBIRD (Lite (Light) satellite for the studies of B-mode polarization and Inflation from cosmic background Radiation Detection) experiment is a space mission dedicated to studying the polarization of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). Its primary objective is to detect the faint B-mode polarization patterns in the CMB, which are believed to be imprints of gravitational waves from the early universe, particularly from the period of cosmic inflation. LiteBIRD is equipped with a 30 arcmin beam width and an extraordinarily low polarization noise of 2.16μK-arcmin, making it uniquely capable of capturing large scale full-sky CMB polarization.
Our studies address two significant challenges in detecting Inflationary B-modes: foregrounds and the weak gravitational lensing of the CMB.Foregrounds, varying with observation frequency, can be mitigated through multi-frequency sky observations. However, gravitational lensing of the CMB presents a different problem, as it is not frequency-dependent and causes E-mode polarization to convert to B-modes. This conversion masks the primordial B-modes we aim to detect. Our work concentrates on estimating the mass distribution from the CMB field to create a template of lensing B-modes. By removing this lensing-induced B-mode template from the observational data, we enhance the sensitivity towards detecting Inflationary gravitational waves.
This talk will explore the methodologies used in this study, the challenges encountered, and the potential impact on the detection of the Inflationary gravitational waves.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Archeology of interstellar archipelagos: Reconstructing the lifecycle of star-forming clouds
2024-04-22 11:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, April 22, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Juan Diego Soler (IAPS-INAF)
ABSTRACT:
Determining how star-forming molecular clouds (MCs) arise from and interact with the diffuse interstellar medium (ISM) is crucial for understanding the initial conditions of planet and star formation and the evolution of the Milky Way and other similar galaxies. I will present state-of-the-art observations of neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) and interstellar magnetic fields, which, combined with numerical simulations and novel statistical tools based on machine vision, reveal three crucial aspects of the MC lifecycle. First, the signature of magnetization in the structure of MCs in the solar neighborhood, within 500 parsecs from the Sun. Two, the imprint of supernova feedback in the HI structure across the Galactic plane. And finally, the coupling between atomic and molecular gas in and around MCs. I will discuss the consequences of these findings for our understanding of the Galactic ecosystem and the prospects for radio-interferometric and submillimeter polarization observations from the forthcoming facilities.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

MSC in Physics: which curriculum? (2024 edition)
2024-04-23 15:00 - 18:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
In collaborazione con il Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, giorno 23 aprile 2024, con inizio alle ore 15:00, presso l’Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, avrà luogo l’iniziativa “Which Curriculum”, rivolta alle studentesse e agli studenti della laurea triennale in Fisica come orientamento nella scelta della specializzazione per il corso magistrale.

Durante il pomeriggio, i ragazzi potranno visitare i nostri laboratori e parlare con i nostri ricercatori per conoscere e approfondire le attività scientifiche, i progetti in corso e le prospettive future.

L’incontro è promosso dalla Commissione Qualità del DFA.

Pint of Science 2024: Dalla Polvere ai Buchi Neri
2024-05-13 21:00 - 22:30 | Joyce Irish pub, Via Montesano 46, Catania, 95131, Italia
Nell’ambito dell’iniziativa “Pint of Science“, che si propone di promuovere incontri con ricercatori in un ambiente accogliente e informale, vi segnaliamo la seguente iniziativa, che si svolgerà presso il Joyce Irish Pub, Via Montesano 46 – Catania.

Titolo: Dalla polvere ai buchi neri
Sommario: Tu potresti morire ma il deserto nasconderebbe il segreto della tua morte che rimarrebbe dopo di te per coprire la tua memoria con il vento… scrive John Fante in Ask the dust. Chiedi quindi alla polvere, ma di una stella, se vuoi sapere cosa ci attende se cadessimo in un Buco Nero, dove lo spazio diventa tempo e il tempo diventa spazio, dove forse si cela il passaggio verso un nuovo Universo gemello del nostro. Siete pronti a questo viaggio cosmico?
Relatore: Alfio Bonanno (Primo Ricercatore – INAF Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania e INFN Sezione di Catania).
Alfio Bonanno, è Primo Ricercatore INAF associato alla Sezione di Catania dell’INFN. I suoi interessi di ricerca principali sono la Gravità Quantistica e lo studio dei campi magnetici stellari. Durante il dottorato di Ricerca è stato Research Assistant alla University of Alberta dove ha lavorato con il gruppo di cosmologia di Werner Israel e ha poi proseguito la sua esperienza in varie università e centri di ricerca europei. Attualmente lavora presso l’Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania e nel tempo libero suona il pianoforte. Insegna da alcuni anni anche un corso su Teologia e Scienze all’ISSR presso la Facoltà Teologica di Palermo.

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ESP2024 - PLATO PLANETARY SYSTEMS: Formation to Observed architectures
2024-05-14 09:00 - 2024-05-16 18:00 | Department of Physics and Astronomy “Ettore Majorana” (DFA) of the Catania University, Via Santa Sofia 64, Catania, 95123, Italia
PLATO is the 3rd mission of class M in the ESA Cosmic Vision program. Its main goal is detecting terrestrial planets in the habitable zone of solar type stars. With its huge FOV, most of the PLATO targets are bright stars that will be monitored with high cadence (25 s) for at least 2-3 years during the long duration observing program, while contemporary a number of very bright stars in the sample will be observed with 2.5 s cadence. The collected data, photometry from space and high resolution spectroscopy from the ground, will provide accurate planetary structures as well as architectures and evolutionary stage – via asteroseismic analysis – of a large number of planetary systems. PLATO is planned for a launch in Dec 2026.
More information on PLATO are on the ESA website and in PLATO Mission Consortium website.
With PLATO Mission due for launch soon this would seem a good time to review the present state of knowledge of exoplanet systems and the objectives of the mission. PLATO is optimized for the detection and characterization of small planets in the habitable zones of Sun-like stars. By combining two cutting-edge approaches: planetary transits and the study of the internal structure of stars using stellar seismology, supported by a dedicated ground-based observation programme.In combination with a dedicated ground based observation programme, PLATO will provide accurate planetary parameters (including age) for a large sample of exoplanets which could be used to answer many scientific questions eg if there are favoured evolutionary paths for exoplanets by comparison with theoretical population models PLATO will provide accurate and complete planetary parameters (including age) for a large sample of exoplanets, allowing to address a variety of scientific questions: planet occurrences, trends in composition, dynamical evolution, favoured evolutionary paths, etc.
The aim of this conference is to review the current state of the art in the field and to examine the range of scientific questions PLATO data could prove useful. Themed sessions will examine planetary systems at all stages of their evolution as well as give an overview of the PLATO mission, its future data, and how to become involved.

SESSION THEMES
1 – PLATO mission – where are we?2 – PLATO Science – From Stars to Planets3 – System architectures from observations4 – Advances in planet formation5 – Exoplanets Evolution6 – Relevant Stellar Science

More info

Pint of Science 2024: La conquista dello spazio
2024-05-14 21:00 - 22:30 | Joyce Irish pub, Via Montesano 46, Catania, 95131, Italia
Nell’ambito dell’iniziativa “Pint of Science“, che si propone di promuovere incontri con ricercatori in un ambiente accogliente e informale, vi segnaliamo la seguente iniziativa, che si svolgerà presso il Joyce Irish Pub, Via Montesano 46 – Catania.

Titolo: La conquista dello spazio
Sommario: Partendo dallo storico viaggio di Gagarin, si parlerà di come il genere umano ha conquistato lo spazio che ci circonda, delle prospettive future a breve e lungo termine e, per i pochi a quel punto ancora ragionevolmente sobri, delle ricadute sulla vita di tutti i giorni delle tecnologie spaziali.
Immagine Credits: ESA liberamente modificata da Daniela Sicilia
Relatore: Giuseppe Cutispoto (Primo Ricercatore – INAF Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania)
Laurea in Fisica e dottorato in Astrofisica a Catania. Ricercatore presso l’Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania dal 1987, attualmente Primo Ricercatore. Coordinatore del Comitato Organizzatore dei Campionati Italiani di Astronomia. Appassionato di fantascienza, sfortunatamente (quasi) astemio.

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Etna Comics 2024
2024-06-06 10:00 - 2024-06-09 20:00 | Le Ciminiere, viale Africa 222, Catania
L’Istituto Nazonale di Astrofisica sarà presente all’edizione 2024 di Etna Comics, rassegna di fumetti e giochi che si svolge a Catania dal 6 al 9 giugno.

Per il secondo anno consecutivo, l’Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica parteciperà alla ormai consolidata rassegna di fumetti e giochi Etna Comics, manifestazione inaugurata nel 2011 e che si tiene ogni anno presso il centro fieristico le Ciminiere di Catania.
In particolare l’INAF si presenta con una serie di attività interattive nell’Area Family. Potrete infatti giocare a PIXEL – Picture (of) the Universe, il gioco da tavolo sulla risoluzione in astrofisica o a Cosmo Hunters, gioco di carte sull’osservazione degli oggetti celesti, senza dimenticare il Code Hunting Game, una caccia al tesoro virtuale nel mondo dell’astronomia che vi permetterà di entrare nel mondo del coding. Per gli appassionati di giochi a quiz c’è poi Chi vuol essere astrofisico?, con un neanche troppo nascosto riferimento a un famoso quiz televisivo.
Ci sono poi molte attività che stimolano la parte artistica, in particolare quella dei bambini, come per esempi Il Solametro – Disegna i Pianeti e mettili al posto giusto, o ancora Disegna il tuo pianeta (reale o immaginario) e un classico come Pixel Art, ovviamente a tema astronomico.
Nell’Area Comics, poi, il 7 giugno alle 11 in sala Galatea Angelo Adamo, ricercatore tecnologo dell’INAF IASF di Palermo, presenta INAFfumètti: con la testa ben oltre le nuvole (balloons), nel corso del quale presenterà la sua ultima opera, realizzata in collaborazione con Sandro Bardelli, dell’OAS di Bologna. B.A.O. – Baryon-Acoustic-Oscillations, che segue anche stilisticamente l’opera dello scorso anno, presentata a Lucca Comics&Science 2023, è incentrato sulla materia oscura ed è un’ottima introduzione alla scienza dietro Euclid, il satellite dedicato proprio allo studio di questa sfuggente forma della materia.Ovviamente i lettori di EduINAF possono scaricare il fumetto a questo link: B.A.O. – Baryon-Acoustic-Oscillations.
Buona lettura e una buona Etna Comics a chi andrà a visitare questa emozionante rassegna!
Fonte: EduINAF

Resilience of Eukaryotic Life in Mars-Like Simulated Conditions
2024-07-08 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, July 8, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Maria Teresa Muscari-Tomajoli (Parthenope University of Naples, Italy)
ABSTRACT

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Neural Networs: new models for recovering the Cosmic Microwave Background
2024-07-15 11:30 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, July 15, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. José Manuel Casas González, Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnologías Espaciales de Asturias (ICTEA)
ABSTRACT:The Cosmic Microwave Background, the relic emission from the primordial Universe, is one of the most important observables in Cosmology. Its recovery is generally carried out by parametric and (semi) blind methods after removing several Galactic and extragalactic emissions. However, in order to take into account their non-linear behaviors, Machine Learning approaches such Neural Networks seem to be promising for that task. In this talk, I will describe how they begin to be an alternative and reliable methods for recovering the Cosmic Microwave Background.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Galactic Archaeology: decoding the fossil record of Galaxy formation and evolution
2024-07-22 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, July 22, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: DFA UNICT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dott. Santi Cassisi, INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico d’Abruzzo
ABSTRACT:One of most important issue in Astrophysics is the achievement of a robust understanding of the sequence of processes that contributed to the building up of the Milky Way. This is obviously important not only “on a local scale” in order to recover the history of formation and evolution of the Galaxy, but also, more in general, for understanding the formation process of spiral galaxies. In the last decade, the advent of high precision photometric and spectroscopic surveys as well as the possibility to estimate, thanks to the ESA Gaia mission, accurate distance for a huge number of field stars, combined with the development of an accurate theoretical framework, is actually opening a new era for this kind of investigations.We will present some recent results – obtained by using this updated observational and theoretical framework – about the formation and early evolution of the Milky Way.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

The Hot Neptune Desert
2024-09-23 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, September 23, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dott. Christian Magliano (Università di Napoli Federico II, Naples, Italy)
ABSTRACT:The vast majority of close-in planets are either massive hot Jupiters capable of holding their atmosphere against the stellar photoevaporation or small rocky planets completely drained by the stellar radiation. We observe an unexpected dearth of highly irradiated Neptune- and Saturn-like planets orbiting their host star in less than 4-10 days, called “Hot Neptune Desert”. In this talk, I will present our recent findings from uniformly vetting 250 hot Neptune TESS candidates using a two-step vetting technique, as well as discuss a cutting-edge approach to examine the problem under a new perspective. I will also discuss how the PLATO mission may enhance our understanding of the Hot Neptunes.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Notte Europea dei Ricercatori 2024
2024-09-27 18:00 - 2024-09-28 13:00
SHARPER è il nome di uno dei progetti italiani sostenuti dalla Commissione Europea per la realizzazione della Notte Europea dei Ricercatori.
SHARPER significa SHAring Researchers’ Passion for Enhanced Roadmaps e ha l’obiettivo di coinvolgere tutti i cittadini nella scoperta del mestiere di ricercatore e del ruolo che i ricercatori svolgono nel costruire il futuro della società attraverso l’indagine del mondo basata sui fatti, le osservazioni e l’abilità nell’adattarsi e interpretare contesti sociali e culturali sempre più complessi e in continua evoluzione.
Per l’edizione 2024, SHARPER si svolgerà il 27 settembre in 15 città italiane, tra cui Catania, per raccontare la passione, le scoperte e le sfide dei ricercatori di tutta Europa attraverso mostre, spettacoli, concerti, giochi, conferenze e centinaia di altre iniziative rivolte al grande pubblico.
In occasione della Notte dei Ricercatori 2024, l’INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania ha organizzato le seguenti attività per il pubblico che si svolgeranno tra il 27 e il 28 settembre:

L’ASTROFISICA PER IL FUTURO – I ricercatori guideranno i visitatori alla scoperta dei progetti di ricerca dell’INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania e presenteranno gli strumenti e i software per la “Visualizzazione immersiva” – Per i più piccoli: concorso “Disegna il tuo pianeta reale o immaginario” e laboratorio didattico “Effetto serra in bottiglia” – “Gioco a premi: “Chi vuol essere astrofisico”
A cura di P. Romano, G. Cutispoto, G. Scandariato, D. Sicilia, E. Sciacca, F. Vitello, L. Pelonero, M. ImbroscianoData e ora: 27-09-2024 dalle 18:00 alle 24:00Luogo: Cortile Platamone (stand n. 16), Catania

OSSERVAZIONI AL TELESCOPIO – I ricercatori dell’INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania guideranno i visitatori nell’osservazione di alcuni oggetti celesti attraverso l’ausilio di un telescopio dedicato.
A cura di L. Contarino, A. Frasca, J. Alonso SantiagoData e ora: 27-09-2024 dalle 21:00 alle 24:00

Per partecipare gli interessati dovranno rivolgersi allo Stand n. 16 – Cortile Platamone, Palazzo della Cultura

TECNICHE DI RADIOASTRONOMIA PER LA MEDICINA – La radioastronomia ha sviluppato nel corso degli ultimi decenni moltissimi algoritmi atti alla generazione della miglior immagine possibile. è possibile applicare questi stessi algoritmi alla diagnostica in medicina?
Mini-Talk a cura di F. CavallaroData e ora: 27-09-2023 dalle 19:00 alle 19:10Luogo: Palazzo Sangiuliano, Piazza Università, 13

PERCHE’ SOLO SULLA TERRA? ALLA RICERCA DI VITA NELLO SPAZIO – Le attività di astrobiologia in corso a INAF-OACT. Presenza di composti utili alla vita nello spazio, origini della vita sulla Terra, ricerca di tracce di vita extraterrestre e rischi causati dal cambiamento climatico.
Mini-Talk a cura di R. G. Urso, M. E. Palumbo, C. ScirèData e ora: 27-09-2024 dalle 19:30 alle 19:40Luogo: Aula 13 – Rettorato Piazza Università, 2

DALL’ASTRONOMIA ALL’INDUSTRIA PER LO STUDIO DI CATASTROFI NATURALI –Presentazione degli strumenti di analisi dei fenomeni astronomici e loro sfruttamento per la valutazione dei rischi legati a eventi climatici estremi nell’ambito della collaborazione industriale HaMMon finanziata dal PNRR.
Mini-Talk a cura di E. Sciacca, F. Vitello, L. Pelonero, M. ImbroscianoData e ora: 27-09-2024 dalle 19:40 alle 19:50Luogo: Palazzo Sangiuliano Piazza Università, 13

PORTE APERTE ALL’OSSERVATORIO – Visita all’Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania. Osservazioni della fotosfera e cromosfera solare e 2 talk dal titolo: “Il Sole: Agente Primario del Clima sulla Terra” e “Gli effetti delle eruzioni solari sulla Terra”.
Le prenotazioni saranno possibili a partire dal 24 Settembre attraverso il sito EventBrite (link)
A cura di G. Cutispoto, S.L. Guglielmino e L. ContarinoData e ora: 28-09-2024 dalle 9:30 alle 13:00Luogo: Osservatorio Astrofisico – via S. Sofia, 78

Unraveling Space Weathering on Planetary and Astrophysical Surfaces
2024-10-04 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Friday, October 4, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Prof. Thomas M. Orlando (School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and School of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA)
ABSTRACT:It is well known that the interaction of energetic ions, electrons and photons with surfaces and interfaces leads to non-thermal desorption via a process typically referred to as desorption induced by electronic transitions (DIET). When DIET involves either electrons or photons, these processes are generally referred to as electron-stimulated desorption and photon-stimulated desorption (PSD), respectively. Recent attention has focused on understanding the role of non-thermal “space weathering” in the processing of interstellar grains and ices.Specifically, there is deep interest in understanding the radiation processing of carbon grains in the solar nebula and unraveling the H2O formation mechanisms in solar nebula and planetary systems, including the Moon. Using graphite grains, the VUV photon-simulated oxidation of carbon grains via reactive scattering of water fragments produced by dissociative electron attachment at the buried interface was examined. The results suggested that VUV PSD at the buried water:carbon grain interface may help control the carbon inventory during planet formation. The inverse process, (i.e, the formation of water) may happen on metal-oxide samples such as mineral grains and lunar regolith samples, that contain or are terminated by hydroxyl groups. Solar wind spaceweathering experiments of several Apollo lunar samples demonstrated that thermally activated recombinative desorption (RD) can be H2O sources [2,3] and that electron-stimulated reactive scattering to produce water may also be occurring, especially when the Moon is in the magnetopause[4]. RD can occur on a diurnal basis on the Moon and is prevalentduring meteoroid impacts. The latter is simulated by laser irradiation studies followed by state and velocity resolved detection of the produced water. Finally, evidence of space weathering and surface alteration has also been revealed using spatially resolved, high-resolution nanoscale Fourier transform infrared imaging/spectroscopy correlated with photoluminescence (PL) on Apollo samples with different origins and history.
[1] J. Shi, G. A. Greives, and T. M. Orlando, Astrophys. J 80(1) 24 (2015).[2] B. M. Jones, et. al, Geophys. Res. Lett., 45, (2018) 10,959–10,967[3] B. M. Jones, et. al, Astrophys. J. Lett., 891 (2020) L43[4] 7. S. Li, A. R. Poppe, T. M. Orlando, B. M. Jones, O. J. Tucker, W. M. Farrell, and A. R. Hendrix,”, Nat. Astron. (2023)

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Stellar-wind-fed magnetospheres of magnetic massive stars
2024-10-21 11:30 - 12:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, October 21, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Prof. Stanley Owocki (University of Delaware)
ABSTRACT:A subpopulation (~9%) of hot (OB) stars exhibit strong (B~100-10,000 G), large-scale (often predominantly dipolar) magnetic fields that channel their stellar wind outflows into circumstellar magnetospheres. For young, rapidly rotating B-stars that have not yet been spun down by wind-magnetic braking, wind material can be trapped between the Kepler co-rotation radius (RK) and the Alfven radius (RA), forming then a “Centrifugal Magnetosphere” (CM), with density set at the critical level for “Centrifugal Breakout” (CBO) against the confining magnetic tension. This talk discusses how such CBO controls both the onset and strength of observed H-alpha emission, while the energetics of the associated CBO-driven magnetic reconnection match well the observed scalings of a non-thermal, circularly polarized radio emission from such stars .

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Spectroscopic observations and modeling of solar flares: new insights from IRIS
2024-10-30 10:30 - 11:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Wednesday, October 30, 10:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Vanessa Polito (Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory)
ABSTRACT:Recent high-resolution observations from the IRIS satellites have enabled significant advancements in our understanding of the physical mechanisms at play during the impulsive phase of flares, including details of how the non-thermal energy is released and propagated from the corona to the low-atmosphere through accelerated particles. At the same time, the new discoveries have brought to light new unsolved questions and challenges for current models. This talk will provide some examples of the unique contributions to our understanding of flares from IRIS, also in coordination with other solar observatories, and how state-of-the-art heating models of flares can be constrained by the available imaging and spectral diagnostics. I will also discuss some of the outstanding problems in preparation for the next generation of solar missions.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

From clouds to fragments: on the multi-scale interplay between gravity and turbulence
2024-11-08 11:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Friday, November 8, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dott. Alessio Traficante (IAPS-INAF)
ABSTRACT:The star formation mechanism occurs in well defined structures that can be identified and studied in great details in our own Galaxy: the process starts in giant molecular clouds, objects extended up to several tens of parsecs, within which elongated sub-structures, called filaments, may form. Inside filaments, round-like condensations extended up to ~1pc in radius, the so-called clumps, are the natural birth site of the pre- and proto- stellar fragments, inside which will origin the future stars.There are still many open questions in this hierarchical view of the star formation process: are these structures relatively confined from each other, or is the large-scale environment affecting the dynamics of the formation down to clumps and fragments? Is there a continuous interplay of the various forces involved in the process, namely turbulence, gravity (and magnetic fields), at all scales? Or is there a relevant scale at which gravity will start to dominate the collapse, with critical implications on the star-formation mechanism?After a general overview of the problem, I will present in details some recent results focused on the interplay between gravity and turbulence at the filament, clump and fragment scales. To investigate this interplay at the larger scales, we have combined the dynamics of so-called 70 micron quiet clumps, i.e. very pristine regions not yet strongly affected by feedbacks, with the dynamics of the parent filaments in which they are embedded. At smaller scales, I will discuss the different scenarios of fragments formation in light of the most recent results from the SQUALO (Star formation in QUiescent And Luminous Objects) project. This ALMA survey has been designed to investigate the formation properties in a sample of massive clumps selected to be at various evolutionary stages and with the common feature that they are all accreting at the clump scales.Our results show that a large scales we observe a continuous interplay between turbulence and gravity, where the former creates structures at all scales and the latter takes the lead above a critical value of the surface density is reached, ~ 0.1 g cm^-2. At the same time, the fragmentation properties show several indications that the fragment are “clump-fed”, i.e. the process is dynamical and the gravity dominates the collapse inside our massive clumps.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Lo Spazio come bene comune dell'umanità
2025-03-04 15:15 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
DATA: Martedì, 4 Marzo, 15:15
ORGANIZZATORE: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT)
SPEAKER: Prof.ssa Patrizia Caraveo (Presidente della Società Astronomica Italiana e Dirigente di Ricerca presso INAF-IASF di Milano)
Ad oggi, ci sono in orbita circa 10.000 satelliti operativi (e non meno di 3.000 per così dire “defunti”). Offrono servizi di grande utilità per migliorare la qualità della nostra vita, ma occorre considerare le conseguenze della crescita esplosiva nel loro numero. Benché operino nello spazio, i satelliti hanno infatti un impatto non trascurabile sulla vita e sulle attività che si svolgono sulla Terra e sulla qualità della nostra atmosfera. Lo spazio è parte integrante dell’ecosistema terrestre e prima ce ne renderemo conto meglio sarà.

Status and future of 21-cm cosmology during the first billion years
2025-03-19 11:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Wednesday, March 19, 11:30 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Prof. Andrei Mesinger (Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa)
ABSTRACT:The 21-cm hyperfine line of neutral hydrogen is set to revolutionize studies of the first billion years, spanning the cosmic dawn of the first stars and eventual reionization of our Universe. I will discuss the potential of this probe in learning about the unknown astrophysics of the first galaxies as well as physical cosmology. Current upper limits on the cosmic 21-cm power spectrum already provide new insights into the heating of the intergalactic medium, and the X-ray sources in the first galaxies. I will discuss the upcoming steps, including the main challenges, that will eventually lead to the Nobel prize-worthy 3D map of half of our observable Universe with the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) telescope.Our results show that a large scales we observe a continuous interplay between turbulence and gravity, where the former creates structures at all scales and the latter takes the lead above a critical value of the surface density is reached, ~ 0.1 g cm^-2. At the same time, the fragmentation properties show several indications that the fragment are “clump-fed”, i.e. the process is dynamical and the gravity dominates the collapse inside our massive clumps.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

How is magnetism affecting the properties of solar and stellar acoustic modes?
2025-03-27 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Thursday, March 27, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Eva Panetier (CEA Saclay, Université Paris Cité)
ABSTRACT:Outside of solar neutrinos, the only way to directly probing solar and stellar interiors is to use seismic techniques, i.e. studying the waves propagating inside them. In the case of the Sun, acoustic waves are excited by turbulent motion in the convective envelope, and propagate towards the interior, creating a variety of standing pressure modes (p modes). By investigating how small perturbations influence the modes parameters, it is possible to probe the structural and dynamical properties of the star such as internal rotation and mixing, chemical composition, density, convection zone depth, etc. In the stellar case, asteroseismology allows the inference of the stellar fundamental parameters such as mass, radius, and age. Although, solar p-modes frequency, amplitude, and energy vary in relation with the solar magnetic cycle and similar variations were observed for other magnetically active solar-type stars, such a variability is often overlooked in stellar modelling. In the context of the preparation of the PLATO mission, whose aim is to characterize Earth-like planets orbiting solar-like stars in part thanks to asteroseismology, we need to better understand the relation between magnetic variations and modes parameters. In this seminar, I will focus on the excitation of the solar p modes using the last 28 years of data from the SoHO/GOLF instrument, with a method gathering a better temporal resolution compared to classical approaches. In this framework, I was able to perform a statistical study of the energy of the modes. Summing the energy of all studied modes, I will demonstrate that there is a discrepancy between the observed excitation rate and the expected rate under the hypothesis of excitation driven entirely by turbulent convection. I will discuss the link between this discrepancy and surface magnetism effects such as flares and coronal mass ejection. In conclusion, I will explain how a better understanding of the relation between the dynamo mechanism and modes properties variation across time would allow us to improve the constraint we have on stellar dynamics and obtained refined stellar fundamental parameters.

A few rules:— in case of large in-person attendance, attendees may be asked to wear a face mask— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Probing Impacts of Stellar Variability within HST WFC3/STIS and Ariel Tier 2 and Tier 3 Observations with Activity Metrics
2025-04-03 10:30 - 11:30 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Thursday, April 3, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Alexandra Thompson (Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London)
ABSTRACT:Stellar activity produces two main diagnostics within low-resolution exoplanet transmission spectra. Its highly chromatic nature imparts trends in the underlying spectrum that become most noticeable at shorter wavelengths due to the increased contrast between the flux from the active regions (i.e. spots and/or faculae) and the quiet photosphere. The second characteristic is that activity is inherently time-variable, predominantly modulated by stellar rotation as active regions rotate into and out of view but also with contributions from longer timescales of evolution/decay and even long-term activity cycles e.g. maxima and minima (although certain configurations e.g. polar spots and active latitudes will be more resistant to this). This variability can reveal itself through subsequent observations of the system and is both useful and challenging; it can further help us to identify and constrain potential contamination but also means that observations at different epochs may require individual corrections before they can robustly be combined and analysed together which will become increasingly difficult for smaller planets as the SNR of each visit progressively decreases. In this seminar I will present how both diagnostics have been used with archival HST WFC3 and STIS datasets to create two new activity metrics that are highly complementary to existing indicators. I will also show preliminary results surrounding how this work is being extended to Tier 2 and Tier 3 Ariel simulations to explore how stellar variability will impact our ability to stack visits to obtain the required SNR for these tiers.

A few rules:— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Non-standard signatures from CMB polarisation with an insight into the new technological challenges
2025-04-07 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Monday, April 7, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Dr. Matteo Billi (University of Catania)
ABSTRACT:In this seminar, I will focus on non-standard signatures from CMB polarisation that may indicate the existence of new phenomena beyond the standard models of cosmology and particle physics, from both theoretical and observational perspectives. ESA’s Planck mission has observed CMB temperature anisotropies at the cosmic variance limit, but polarisation remains to be further investigated. CMB polarisation data are important not only because they contribute to provide tighter constraints on cosmological parameters but also because they allow the study of physical processes that would be excluded if only the CMB temperature maps were considered. I use polarisation data into account to assess the statistical significance of the anomalies currently observed only in the CMB temperature map, and to constrain the Cosmic Birefringence (CB) effect, which is expected in parity-violating extensions of the standard electromagnetism.Measuring CMB polarisation is technically challenging because the polarised signal is much fainter than the temperature signal, and accurate polarisation estimates require exquisite control of systematic effects. To investigate the impact of spurious signals in upcoming CMB polarisation experiments, I present a study of the interplay between half-wave plate (HWP) non-idealities and the beams of the instrument for the next generation of CMB experiments, with an insight into how this instrumental contamination affects the measurement of the cosmic birefringence effect.

A few rules:— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.

Line shape modeling for the characterization of magnetized plasmas in fusion research and astrophysics
2025-04-09 11:00 - 12:00 | Sede A. Riccò, Via Santa Sofia 78, Catania
Recording: https://www.oact.inaf.it/seminars/
DATE: Wednesday, April 9, 11:00 a.m.
ORGANIZER: INAF-OACT
LOCATION: AULA OVEST (INAF-OACT) + remote
Link for the remote audience:https://meet.google.com/wvf-uwxo-oyj
SPEAKER: Joel Rosato (Aix-Marseille Université – France)
ABSTRACT:In this talk, we report on a selection of issues present in the elaboration of spectroscopic models for magnetized plasma diagnostic. A focus is put on tokamak edge and white dwarf atmosphere plasma conditions. In both cases, the observed spectra exhibit clean lines, either in absorption or in emission, denoting the presence of neutral species (atoms). An analysis of the line shape and intensity yields information on the plasma parameters provided a suitable physical model is used. We first discuss in detail the physical mechanisms underlying the broadening of the spectral lines due to the plasma microfield (Stark effect), and we next report on models and codes that have been developed in our group at the PIIM laboratory. Applications to the fitting of observed spectra – both in magnetic fusion and astrophysics – are presented. Motivated by current research trends, we also discuss specific issues related to the presence of strong external magnetic field (Zeeman effect etc.) and report on some recent works done in atomic physics for the improvement of line shape models.

A few rules:— before joining, make sure you are using your institutional inaf.it account if you have one (otherwise we will grant you permission to join)— please do not forget to mute your microphone and switch off your webcam when access the virtual room— for questions leave a message in the chat, the answers at the end of the webinar— the seminar will be recorded, so if you are interested in it, please contact us to get the link to the registration.
