Vatican Observatory SUMMER SCHOOL

n 1985, Fr. who can attend are Martin McCarthy that the students must SJ realized that show evidence of likely Ibecause the Vatican success as professional Observatory does astronomers; and no not give degrees, we more than two students had little chance for from any given nation contact with young are accepted. The great people. That was a challenge is choosing shame, he thought, 25 students out of an since they are not applicant pool of up only the promise to 200 candidates. for the future of A majority of the the field, but also often among the most active and students selected come from underdeveloped imaginative researchers. How could this be solved? countries. Tuition is free, and significant financial support ensures that every student accepted is able to attend.

Every school centers on some particular topic in cutting edge astrophysics. For four weeks the students are given morning classes from a team of world class faculty, spend their afternoons on research projects, and in the evening attend special lectures from visiting scholars.

He hit upon the idea of a regular month-long summer school to be held at the Observatory at Castel Gandolfo on some special topic in astronomy and astrophysics. A year later, the Vatican Observatory Summer School program was born. Since then, the Observatory has held such a school roughly every two years. In 2020, we will be holding our 17th school.

The schools are open to advanced astronomy undergraduates and beginning graduate students from around the world; more than 55 nations have been represented so far. The only rules determining To date, over 400 young astronomers have passed through these schools. They have gone on to work at the most prestigious institutions in the world, like the Max Planck Institut für Astrophysik, the European Southern Observatory, and leading astronomy programs at universities including Arizona, Caltech, Cambridge, Harvard, Oxford, and Yale.

The faculty are among the most notable astronomers of their age, drawn from leading observatories and universities around the world. Among them have been Vera Rubin, winner of the 2002 Gruber Cosmology Prize for her discovery of dark energy; Frank Shu, later president of the National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan; Michael A’Hearn, the Principal Investigator of the NASA Deep Impact space mission to Comet 9P/Temple; and Didier Queloz, winner of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics for his role in discovering the first exoplanets!

In addition to their lectures, one weekend is spent in Florence with a visit to Galileo’s home, while day trips from Castel Gandolfo range from tours of ancient historical sites to a day at the beach. And of course, Rome itself is a popular afternoon and weekend destination for the students. Indeed, all schools include a tour of the Vatican itself, and most have featured a private audience with the Pope.

Starting in 2020, these schools will be funded entirely by private donations through the Vatican Observatory Foundation. Visit www.vofoundation.org