2012 Annual Progress Report Guideline

BAS AL FINANCING PROGRAM FOR SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE 200 8 – 201 2

ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT

GUIDELINES

The report should be written following the format specified hereafter . Once i t is completed , it sh ould be sent in printed and in electronic version to the following address:

Programa Financiamiento Basal Para Centros Científicos y Tecnológicos de Excelencia CONICYT Mailing address: Bernarda Morín 551 , Providencia, Santiago E - mail: Phone: (56 - 2) 4354312 For further inquiries contact :

PR O GRESS REPORT N°: TIME PERIOD: 04/2008 To 12/2008

I. PRESENTATION

NAME OF THE CENTER COD E Centro de Astrofisica y Tecnologias Afines P F B - 06 DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER E - MAIL

Maria Teresa Ruiz EXECUTIVE / DEPUTY / CO - DIRECTOR Guido Garay

MANAGER OF TECHNOLOG Y TRANSFER (if appl icable)

SPONSOR ING INSTITUTION Universidad de Chile ASSOCIATED INSTITUTION ( S ) Pontificia Universidad Catolica and Universidad de Concepcion

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS N ame E - MAIL

1. - Bronfman Aguiló Leonardo

2. - Clocchiatti Alejandro

3. - Garay Brignardello Guido

4. - Geisler Douglas

5. - Gieren Waiblinger Wolfgang

6. - Hamuy Wackenhut Mario

7. - Infante Lira Leopoldo

8. - Maza Sancho José

9. - Minniti Del Barco Dante

OTHER INVESTIGATORS Name E - MAIL

1. - Andrés Escala

2. - Andrés Jordan

3. - Patricio Mena

4. - Leonardo Vanzi

5. - Felipe Barrientos

6. - Marcio Catelan

7. - Gaspar Galaz

8. - Nelson Padilla

9. - Hernán Quintana

10. - Andreas Reise negger

11. - Manuela Zoccali

12. - Luis Campusano

13. - Simón Casassus

14. - Edgardo Costa

15. - Paulina Lira

16. - Sebastian López

17. - Diego Mardones

18. - Jorge May

19. - René Méndez

20. - Patricio Rojo

21. - Mónica Rubio

22. - R onald Mennickent

23. - Neil Nagar

24. - Tom Richtler

Research Lines

N° Title Objectives Principal Investigator Other Investigators

1. - Area 1 Birth and evolution of structures in the Universe Leopoldo Infante

Area 2 Stellar Populations in th e Local Universe Douglas Geisler

Area 3 Distance Scale Wolfgang Gieren

Area 4 Star Formation Guido Garay

Area 5 Extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs Dante Minniti

Area 6 Supernovae and Dark Matter Mario Hamuy

2. - Area 7 Astronomical Instrument ation Leonardo Bronfman

Area 8 High Performance Astronomical Computing Alejandro Clocchiatti

Area 9 Outreach Jose Maza

Changes in research personnel Indicate any changes in the staff of Principal Investigators as compared to the original pro ject.

No changes in the staff of Principal Investigators

Advisory Committee Name its members and date of constitution, d escribe its task, frequency of meeting s , decisions taken and/or recommendations made.

T he Advisory Committee of t he CATA was recently created . The Committee is constituted by four distinguished scie ntists with experience in the direction and/or scientific operation of International Institutes or Observatories:

 Dr. Mark Phillips, Associate Director, Carnegie Observatories  Dr. Michael West, Head of Science, European Southern Observatory  Dr. Lars Nym an, Head of Science Operations, ALMA  Dr. Rainer Mauersberger, Commissioning Scientist, Joint ALMA Office.

During July of this year they will made on site visits to the three Institutions of the Center a nd reviewed its operation of the Center since its cre ation. They are expected to provide a document with a critical view of the Center and recommendations .

II. EXECUTIVE S UMMARY

This section should be written in no more than one pa ge ( Arial 10 or equivalent ) and must be in relation to the progress made in the reporting period . Its contents are public and may be published on CONICYT’s web site. We therefore request the use of relatively simple language or explanations when technical terms are required.

The Centro de Astrofisica y Tecnologia Afines (CATA) is hosted by the Universidad de Chile at its Astronomy Department in Cerro Calán, and has as associated organizations the Astronomy Department of the Pontificia Universidad Católica and the newly created Astronomy Department of the Universidad de Concepción. The main goals of the CATA are to produce a significant increase in the astronomical community working in Chile: researchers, students and specialized engineers, in order to meet, in the best possible way, the challenges posed by the newly available facilities and take advantage of the opportunity for technological developments associated with these foreign investments . The actions taken by the CATA during its first year of ope rati on have been very successful in the pursue of these goals.

The CATA has brought forth a substantial increase in the number of new researchers at the three associated inst itutions . During its first year of operation the Center allowed the hiring of four new members on a full - time basis: Andres Escala (Theoretician) and Patricio Mena ( Electrical Engineer) at the Universidad de Chile, and Andres Jordan (Astrophysicist) and Leonardo Vanzi ( Engineer) at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica. Also during 2008, CATA incorporated into the research and academic activities of the Center twenty new scientists at the different institutions on a partial time - basis.

The CATA is strongly promoting and fostering collaborations among astronomers working in related topics across the country, as well as internationally. In particular, CATA is encouraging scientists from the three Chilean institutions to work together in large collaborative projects that are beyond the scope of small research groups. Key programs have been a lready implemented and granted considerable amounts of observing time in several telescopes at the International Observatories in Chile. These large, as well as small more individual, projects are providing a strong start to fulfill one of the goals of the Center, that is to broaden the research base in each astronomy site within the country.

The scientific work performed in all six research areas of the CATA during the first year of operation has been considerable. During the period April 08 - December 0 8, CATA members published 71 papers in refereed journals. Collaborative work among Cente r members is rapidly building up , ensuring the fulfillment of one of the scientific goals of the Center which is to boost strong scientific collaborations between membe rs of the different participant institutions.

The CATA is rapidly playing a key role in the development of high technology in Chile. During 2008, the initiatives in astronomical instrumentation, high performance astronomical computing and robotics have s tarted at full pace in order to achieve their final goals. All these projects are involving professors of electrical engineering and engineering students from the associated institutions. We expect that at the end of the ten year period, CATA will not onl y be responsible for the production of high technology astronomical products, but also the seed for the development of engineering and industry in the country.

In summary, activities in both the research and development of high technology areas have sta rted in - full.

III. HIGHLIGHTS

In no more than t hree pages describe the most important activities and /or result s during the reporting period . Place them in relation to the expected results mentioned in the original Development Plan, the Annual Operati on Plan ( May 2008 to December 2009 (*) ) and the goals established in Appendix 5 of the agreement signed with CONICYT .

1. Human resources

The CATA has made possible a substantial increase in the number of new researchers at the three institutions associated to the Center. During its first year of operation the Center allowed the hiring of four new members on a full - time basis: Andres Escala (Theoretician) and Patricio Mena ( Electrical Engineer) at the Universidad de Chile, and Andres Jordan (Astrophysicist) and Leonardo Vanzi ( Engineer) at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica. Also during 2008, CATA incorporated into the research and academic activities of the Center twenty new scientists at the different institutions on a partial time - basis.

2. Research T he CATA has brought scientists from the three Chilean institutions to work together, particularly in large collaborative projects that are beyond the scope of small research groups. Key Projects have been implemented to foster multi - institutional collabor ations within the country and abroad. These programs are successfully developing and producing important results. They have been granted considerable amounts of observing time in several telescopes at the International Observatories in Chile. The scientif ic work performed in all research areas of the CATA during the first year of operation has been considerable and fully in accord with the science goals as formulated in the proposal. A quantification of this assertion is provided by the seventy one (71) p apers published, during the April 2008 - December 2008 period, in refereed journals by Center members. In summary, research activities in all areas are proceeding intensely in - line with the initial science objectives and broadening their scope. The large an d small projects carried out by Center members are fulfilling one of the Center goals, that is to broaden the research base in each astronomy site within the country, as well as to establish strong collaborations between the member institutions.

3. Format ion of human resources

CATA is support ing the formation of human resources in astrophysics in all of the Astronomy programs in the country, which were created due to the efforts of Center members. The number of graduate astronomy students at the three in stitutions associated to the Center has experienced a ten fold increase with respect to the average value of the last decade, with currently a total of 64 students. Most of these students have benefited from the Center by receiving grants in order to parti cipate in observing runs at the International Observatories in Chile and/or to attend international meetings. In addition the Center has given full f ellowships to several graduate students. The Center has hosted several scientists from abroad. Their expert ise on different astrophysical topics has enhanced the activities of the Center. In addition to the research collaborations with Center members, the visiting scientists have played an important role in the teaching of astrophysics in our Ph.D. programs.

4. Technological development.

During its first year of operation CATA provide d a strong boost to the development of high technology in Chile, through initiatives in astronomical instrumentation, high performance computing and rob otics. All these initia tives involve professors of electrical engineering and e ngineering students from the associated universities providing an important seed for the development of high technology in the country. This is in accord with one of the goals of CATA which is to sup port Chilean astronomers and engineers to become actively involved in the joint development of new instrumentation, which requires innovation in high technology and computer science.

(*) Referring to the activities and results achieved so far

IV. OBJEC TIVES AND ACTIVITIES

According to the Development Plan, the Annual Operation Plan (POA) and t he goals established in appendix five of the Agreement, describe in no more than ten pages the objectives and the activities that have been achieved during the p eriod and mention those that have not been accomplished indicating the reasons.

1. - Scientific and technological research of excellence with national and international scope and collaboration

The scientific work performed in all six research areas of t he CATA during the first year of operation is in accord with the science goals formulated in the proposal. During the period April 08 - December 08, CATA members published seventy one (71) papers in refereed journals. Given the ample scope of the research and the amount of work done by CATA members in the past year, a detailed description of the scientific work is impracticable. In what follows we provide a summary of the new research programs that have been carried out during the first year of operation in each of the areas.

Area 1. Birth and evolution of structures in the universe (P.I. Leopoldo Infante)

The long - term aim of Area 1 is to contribute in the understanding of the nature and evolution of large scale structures in the universe. Astronomers at CATA are developing ambitious research programs, both observationally in the form of large surveys and by studying individual objects at different look - back times and theoretically by carrying out large cosmological simulations. We are preparing ourselves to take advantage of the new telescopes and instruments coming to Chile, or being built in Chile, such as ACT, VST, VISTA, LSST, GMT, ALMA and possibly E - ELT. Our plans are to develop unique surveys and large theoretical simulations lead by scientists in Chilean institutions. In what follows we mention the most relevant activities carried out and preliminary results produced during 2008.

ISW@VST. The southern 5000 deg 2 deep survey of galaxies in the r - band with the VST to detect the Integrated Sachs Wolf e Effect, study the baryonic acoustic oscillations, is awaiting the ESO call for proposals, which we hope will happen as soon as the telescope becomes operational in the next couple of semesters. In preparation to it and to present this project to the ESO OPC, we carried out the "ISW, BAO and SZ Workshop" in July 2008. More than 20 people participated in the meeting, including faculty, postdocs and graduate students.

ACT Survey. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope, a sub - mm radio telescope, is aimed to constr ain cosmological parameters by the study of the cosmic background radiation fluctuations at small scales. Complementary to the CMB fluctuations, the observations will produce a unique sample of galaxy clusters selected only by mass, and almost independent of their redshift. We have started a spectroscopic survey of the optical and SZ selected clusters in order to determine their redshift and masses. This program is currently underway and data on the Gemini South observatory has been awarded. We have also st arted a study of the clustering properties of sub - millimiter galaxies detected in ACT maps as point sources. This new dataset will allow us to determine the cluster properties of sub - mm galaxies at scales not measured before, so that we can estimate their halo masses and study the link with their believed descendants, massive elliptical galaxies.

Ly  Emitters. The aim of this project is the measurement of the clustering properties of Lyman Alpha Emitter (LAE) and Lyman Break Galaxies (LBG) in quasar field s. We are measuring the two - point cross - correlation function between LAEs and LBGs, and use it to deduce physical properties of dark matter halos hosting those galaxies: bias factors, masses and number densities. The chosen fields have an extensive VLT spe ctroscopy of the LBGs and quasars detected in the broadband imaging available. These spectra allow us to search for the visible counterparts of the quasar and LBG absorption systems among the detected LAEs. T he currently available and newly proposed

obser vations will provide us with a unique database to study LAE - LBG clustering properties and its evolution in time.

RCS 2. The imaging, processing and photometry for the Red - Sequence Survey 2 are in the process of analysis to produce final photometric and ga laxy cluster catalogs. From the preliminary catalogs we have selected 70 strong lensing systems for which we have started a spectroscopic survey. We have confirmed the nature of about 20 of these systems with, and we have secured observing time in 8m class telescopes to confirm a similar sample.

Models of galaxy formation. In parallel and in support to the above surveys, theoretical work has been going on using our newly CATA acquired large supercomputer. The acquisition of the new supercomputer for the C enter will make it possible to reduce and analyze data and construct models of the Universe spanning volumes comparable to those sampled by the upcoming 5000sq. degree survey proposed by CATA members, as well as the volume that will be sampled by ALMA. Th is will be achieved by running a 10243 particle dark - matter simulation for a box size of 1000 h - 1 Mpc. The output consisting of 100 snapshots will be used by the LCP model to provide a population of galaxies from redshifts 6 to 0.

Regarding the study of ALMA galaxies, we have already made advances in the inclusion of the sub - mm wavelength in the description of model galaxies, by coupling the LCP model with the GRASIL spectro - photometric code. By analysing the output of the simulation we already came acro ss the problem of a lack of sufficient sub - mm sources in comparison to the SCUBA counts. We are studying the effect of a variable IMF slope on the counts at the moment, in a way that would induce a rather top - heavy IMF during violent events of star - format ion, in line with recent results from other semi - analytic studies, but using an empirical approach.

Area 2. Stellar Populations in the Local Universe (P.I. Doug Geisler)

The science highlights of Area 2 can be divided into three broad scientific topic s: globular clusters systems, studies of nearby galaxies and detailed studies of stellar populations in the Milky Way. In the first topic, the Center started a long - term program to study the dynamics of early - type galaxies using globular clusters as tracer s. The objectives are to constrain the dark matter halos, to study the relationship between globular cluster subpopulations and their kinematical properties, and to compare the predictions of standard dynamical theories as well as MOND with the observed ki nematics. In each galaxy, several hundred globular cluster velocities have been obtained and then the dynamics investigated. All three galaxies studied in this period exhibit distinct dark matter halos, which can be described well by cosmologically motivat ed NFW halos. Interestingly, NGC 4636 and NGC 4374 are compatible with MOND, while NGC 1399 is not.

Concerning the second topic, during 2008 several studies were published of nearby galaxies. The photometric survey of dwarf galaxies in the Antlia cluster in the Washington system resulted in one of the most extended and tight color - magnitude relations ever found for dwarf galaxies. Early - type dwarf galaxies show their effective radii to be independent of luminosity. They identified one more example of the r are class of compact elliptical galaxies which is a companion galaxy to a giant elliptical. For the first time, the stellar metallicity gradient in the disk of a spiral galaxy beyond the Local Group was established from elements such as titanium and iron.. The chemical enrichment history of the Small Magellanic Cloud and its metallicity gradient were studied, with the result of the first detection of a spectroscopic metallicity gradient in this galaxy. It is shown that the metallicity gradient is related to an age gradient, in the sense that more metal - rich stars, which are also younger, are concentrated in the central regions of the galaxy.

Thirdly, work on our own Galaxy has proceeded on several important fronts. One of these is the fascinating new field of multiple populations in globular clusters, which are generally regarded as simple stellar populations with a unique age and abundance. Center members continue to be very

active in this field. Light - element abundances in ~100 RGB stars in the nearby clus ter M4 were ascertained. Surprisingly, a bimodal population with different abundances of Na and O was uncovered. This is the first evidence of the multi - population phenomenon in a low mass cluster, which heretofore has been seen only in the most massive Ga lactic globular clusters.

Area 3. The Extragalactic Distance Scale (P.I. Wolfgang Gieren)

The principal science activity in this area is associated to the Araucaria Project. Progress has been made on several fronts. The search for Cepheid variables was successfully completed for the two most distant spiral galaxies of the project, NGC 247 and NGC 7793 in the Sculptor Group and results were published for NGC 247. Infrared follow - up photometry of Cepheids using VLT - ISAAC images was completed and published for the Sculptor spiral galaxy NGC 55 and the Local Group galaxy WLM. Both studies have led to very accurate (3 - 4% total error) distances for these galaxies. They also obtained near - IR images of a large number of Cepheids in M 33 with VLT - HAWK - I which are under analysis and will yield a much improved Cepheid distance to this Local Group spiral.

Center members have applied for the first time the infrared RR Lyrae star PLZ relation to samples of RR Lyrae variables they have observed in the LMC and the Scul ptor dSph galaxy. Data were obtained with Magellan - PANIC. A new (and first) LMC distance measured with this method was published by the group. Also in 2008, they started a very extensive new program to obtain radial velocity curves and infrared photometry of some 30 late - type detached eclipsing binary systems in both Magellanic Clouds recently discovered by OGLE - III. Some of these systems have orbital periods of several hundred days. These late - type binaries have the potential to measure their distances to 1% and are therefore extremely interesting targets for the Araucaria Project. The group has recently concluded the observations and analysis of the first of these systems, obtaining a distance to the LMC accurate to 3% from this one system. Large amounts o f observing time to cover the radial velocity curves of these binaries were obtained at ESO (HARPS) and LCO (Magellan - MIKE). To improve the surface brightnes - color calibration for these late - type eclipsing binaries which is crucial for the distance determi nation, they started a program to obtain radial velocity curves and infrared photometry of some 50 nearby eclipsing binaries having HIPPARCOS distances to better than 5%. Large amounts of observing time at ESO with HARPS have been secured for this program.

Area 4. Star formation (P.I. Guido Garay)

The main scientific goal of Area 4 is to understand the formation process of low and high mass stars taking place within dense molecular cores. In what follows we describe results achieved in 2008, ongoing res earch and prospects for the future.

During 2008, Center members used APEX/LABOCA to undertake a complete a map of the inner Galactic Plane at 870  m, the first Galaxy - wide continuum survey at sub - millimeter wavelength (The ATLASGAL project). Dust contin uum emission in the (sub)millimeter range is the best tracer of the earliest phases of (high - mass) star formation since it is directly probing the cold material from which the stars form. Such a large unbiased survey is perfectly suited for a statistical s tudy of the scarce and short - lived protostars and protoclusters in the Galaxy. The final survey, in collaboration with MPI and ESO, will image more than 500 deg 2 down to 50 mJy rms in about 400 hrs of observing time. Cross - correlation with already availab le galactic surveys such as GLIMPSE, MIPSGAL, VLA - NVSS, and with similar surveys planned with Herschel and NANTEN2, will help to answer a wide range of questions: (1) What are the properties of the cold phase of massive star - formation? (2) What is the evol utionary sequence for high - mass stars? (3) How important is triggering to form new generations of high - mass stars? (4) What are the earliest phases of the richest clusters of the Galaxy? ATLASGAL will act as a true pathfinder for ALMA by providing large sa mples of high - mass protostars and protoclusters.

Using the APEX telescope, Center members have undertaken several other projects . They are

carrying out a complete study of massive star formation in a GMC in spiral arm: G345.5+1.0. Its high galactic latitu de precludes confusion along the line of sight, making it a perfect laboratory to study star formation. They have made observations of dust continuum emission and molecular lines, identifying more than two hundred gas clumps in both tracers. This will all ow them to address questions such as: How does the clump mass spectrum derived from gas and from dust observations compare? What is the variation of the dust - to - gas ratio along the ring - like structure? Is there a relation of this variation with the gas kin ematics? They also completed a search for high velocity molecular line emission in the newly discovered Serpens - south star forming region, detecting two new strong CO outflow sources. They also initiated a search for evidence of proto - planetary disk emissi on around Herbig AeBe stars. This is important preliminary work for follow - up ALMA studies. They detected 1/3 of the sources, two of which have molecular line profiles consistent with the existence of disks. They initiated a molecular line survey towards low mass dense cores aimed at obtaining the physical conditions with a sample of cores in different evolutionary states. This work will continue for the next two years.

Area 5. Low mass stars and planets. (P.I. Dante Minniti)

The scientific research in Area 5 is successfully growing. In what follows we describe results achieved in 2008 and related scientific activities. The most relevant science results obtained in Area 5 during 2008 have been obtained from The mass - radius relation for transiting exoplan ets, brown dwarfs and M dwarfs collaboration (ESO Large Programme 666). The aim of this program is to enlarge the sample of confirmed OGLE extrasolar planets, and also to populate the mass - radius diagram for low mass objects, including planets, brown dwarf s and late M - type stars.

Center members, in collaboration with a Swiss Team, reported the discovery of two extrasolar planets in 2008: OGLE - TR - 211, a new transiting inflated Hot - Jupiter, and OGLE - TR - 182, a typical Hot - Jupiter on a 4 - day orbit. This work w as based on observations made with the FORS1 camera and the FLAMES/UVES spectrograph at the VLT, ESO and 1.3 - m Warsaw Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory. They also reported the detection of period variations in the extrasolar transiting planet OGLE - TR - 1 11b. The study was based on photometry during transits of this planet, carried out with the Very Large Telescope at Paranal Observatory.

Center members also reported the detection of the first two planets from the N2K Doppler planet search program at the Magellan telescopes. These are two Jupiter - mass planets orbiting the main - sequence stars HD 154672 and HD 205739. In addition, 5 more planets will be published during 2009. These were found during the on - going radial velocity search at the Magellan telesc opes at Las Campanas Observatory, in collaboration with an American team. Center members published a theoretical investigation on possible observation of the general relativistic precession of periastra in exoplanets using radial velocity and transit light curve information. In this work they show that the precession might be observable for some eccentric systems with current facilities although in many cases the signal might be dominated by the precession caused by tidal deformations.

Area 6. Supernovae and Dark Energy (P.I. José Maza)

The main goal of Area 6 is to carry out a complete study of nearby supernovae (SNe) in order to understand the origin of the Dark Energy of the Universe and its properties, one of the most important challenges in contemp orary physics and a worldwide debate. With this in mind, Center members carry out (1) a nearby SNe search (z<0.03) in the southern hemisphere with the PROMPT telescopes in Cerro Tololo, which are available for us to use, and (2) a follow - up program, in clo se collaboration with the "Carnegie Supernova Program", to establish a database with hundredths of nearby SNe (z<0.07) of thermonuclear and gravitational core collapse nature in optical and infrared (IR) wavelengths. This database will allow a significant advancement in our understanding of the progenitor stars of supernovae, their explosion mechanisms, their role in the chemical enrichment of the Universe and their use as distance indicators.

During 2008 our survey, called CHASE, discovered 31 nearby supe rnovae . Considering our current discovery rate, in 2009 we should achieve the goal of 40 supernovae per year. All supernovae are nearby (cz < 45000 km s - 1 ) and the majority are young. Currently CHASE is the most successful nearby supernova search in the so uthern hemisphere and the second worldwide. All of our discoveries were reported to the Central Bureau of Electronic Telegrams (CBET) of the IAU (International Astronomical Union). The latter sends this information by e - mail around the world. In this way t he CHASE project is providing an enormous world visibility to our group. Each time CHASE discovers a supernova a classification spectrum is obtained. Among the 31 discoveries, 14 are Type II supernovae, 13 Type Ia supernovae and only 4 of other types.

T he second step in this research avenue is the acquisition of photometric and spectroscopic data of supernova discovered by CHASE, with the goal of calibrating type Ia supernovae as distance indicators. This project will be carried out in collaboration wit h the Carnegie Supernova Program (CSP), that uses 280 observing nights per year in the 1m and 2.5m telescopes of Las Campanas, in the north of Chile, to study supernovae with redshifts lower than 0.07. During 2008 our collaboration with the CSP observed a total of 73 supernovae , for which we obtained a spectroscopic classification. Some of these were discarded for a subsequent follow - up due to their late evolutionary phase at discovery time, and we retained a sample of 56 supernovae for which we obtained u´ g´r´i´YJHK light curves, as well as optical spectroscopic follow - up data. For a sub - sample we also obtained infrared spectroscopy follow - up data.

Center members have been developing a hydrodynamic code to model Type II supernovae. The code takes as initia l model a double polytrope which describes both the compact core and the extended envelope of the progenitor star. The energy injected in the central zone generates a shock wave which propagates outward. With this code and reasonable parameters for the pro genitor star, we have been able to properly model the light curve of SN 1999em, which is the prototype of this class of SNe. Soon we will use the code to explore the parameter space. In addition, we have computed bolometric corrections for Type II plateau supernovae using three objects with well sampled optical and infrared light curves and two sets of atmosphere models. These corrections allow us to compute bolometric light curves starting form BVI light curves. We applied this method to 30+ SNe with optic al photometry, which will allow us to model them using our hydrodynamic code.

2. - Increase in human resources.

During 2008, CATA allowed a substantial increase in the number of researchers working at the Associated Institutions. Four new researchers hav e been hired with CATA support:

 Andres Escala (Theoretical Astrophysics, at Universidad de Chile)  Andres Jordan (Observational Astronomy, at Pontificia Universidad Catolica)  Patricio Mena (Department of Electrical Engineering, at Universidad de Chile)  Le onardo Vanzi (Professor of Engineering, at Pontificia Universidad Catolica)

Also during 2008, CATA supported the activities of 20 researchers, in addition to the staff of ten Principal Investigators, of the three associated Universities. They are: Felipe Barrientos, Marcio Catelan, Gaspar Galaz, Nelson Padilla, Hernan Quintana, Andreas Reisenegger and Manuela Zoccali at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica; Luis Campusano, Simon Casassus, Edgardo Costa, Paulina Lira, Sebastian Lopez, Diego Mardones, Jorge May, Rene Mendez, Patricio Rojo and Monica Rubio at the Universidad de Chile; and Ronald Mennickent, Neil Nagar and Tom Richtler at the Universidad de Concepcion.

3. - Training o f human resources of excellence.

The number of graduate astronomy studen ts at the three institutions associated to the Center continues to increase with respect to the average value of the last decade. During 2008 there were thirty eight (38) Ph.D. students in astronomy and twenty six ( 26) students in Master's in Astrophysics programs. Several of these students have taken advantage of the Center being granted funds in order to participate in observing runs at the International Observatories in Chile and/or to attend international meetings. In addition the Center has given full fellowships to more than a dozen of graduate students. During 2008, more than thirty graduate and undergraduate students were working in individual science projects associated with Key Projects.

During 2008, seven students obtained their Ph.D. degree, 4 at the Universidad de Chile , 2 at Universidad de Concepción and 1 at Pontificia Universidad Católica. This number is greater than the total number of Ph.D. students that have graduated during the last seven years and shows that the young Ph.D. programs a t the three associated institutions are approaching maturity.

In particular, the CATA is allowing a substantial increase in the human resources devoted to the development of astronomical instrumentation in Chile. Two PhD students are involved in the dev elopment of the Band 1 receiver prototype project, Mr. Nicolas Reyes and Mr. Pablo Zorzi. The thesis project of Mr. Reyes, design and construction of the radio - frequency components of the receiver, including the low - noise first stage amplifier (31 - 45 GH z), has been approved by the Electrical Engineering Graduate Program, while the thesis project of Mr. Zorzi, consisting of the design and construction of the receiver optics, has been submitted and is being presently revised by the Graduate Program.

4. Technological innovation .

One of the goals of CATA is to support Chilean astronomers and engineers to become actively involved in the joint development of new instrumentation, which requires innovation in high technology and computer science. During 20 08, CATA gave a strong boost to the development of high technology in Chile, through initiatives in astronomical instrumentation, high performance computing and robotics.

4. 1. - Astronomical instrumentation

The main goal of this area is to design and c onstruct a prototype receiver cartridge for the ALMA Band 1, covering the frequency range between 31.3 GHz to 45 GHz. The Millimeter - wave Laboratory at the National Astronomical Observatory in Cerro Calán, where the receiver prototype will be built, has un dergone a rapid development.

During 2008, two major pieces of equipment were purchased: a high sensitivity Vector Network Analyzer, an instrument that allows to completely characterize the behavior of electronic components in the range 50 MHz to 50 GHz, and a high - precision (1 micrometer positioning) Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) Drilling and Milling Machine (KERN Micro - und Feinwerktechnik MMP2522), which allows construction of the fundamental components of the ALMA Band 1 receiver prototype cartr idge. The Millimeter - wave Laboratory and complementary machine shop have been totally reconditioned to install the newly acquired equipment.

4. 2. - High performance astronomical computing

The astronomical instruments under construction in Chile, lik e the VST, VISTA and ALMA, will produce several tens of Gb per night of raw data, while the proposed LSST will produce 30 Tb per night already in 2012. Without a significant increase in computing and storage capabilities the post - telescope work is doomed t o become a real bottleneck. Since databases and software development are not a part of the agreements between Chile and the foreign Observatories, if Chilean Astronomy does not develop its own resources, it will soon become overwhelmed by the enormous amou nt of data. Chilean astronomers will have telescope time, but will be unprepared to use it effectively. One of the goals of the CATA is to lead a large, coordinated national effort to join Astrophysics with Computer Science to mount the infrastructure and create the tools that astronomers will need in the near future. During 2008, CATA allowed the purchase and installation of a new cluster, with 128 CPUs, 512 cores, and 576 Gbyte RAM, which is the most powerful Astronomy computer cluster available in South America. . In addition, CATA is supporting the development of tools to build and analyze large astronomical databases and catalogues.

4. 3. - Robotics in astrophysics

Supernovae (SNe) explosions are important because they are end – points of stellar evoluti on, because they shape galaxies through their energy and chemical input and because they are the best distance indicators in the high redshift Universe, leading to the discovery of the acceleration of the Universe. A new generation of high precision experi ments looking for high redshift SNe will require correspondingly high levels of accuracy, which can only be accomplished with more and better studied SNe in the nearby Universe.

T he main goal of the Supernova (SNe) area is to produce a high - quality databa se of hundreds of nearby (z<0.07) SNe. To secure this dataset CATA members have just started a search for SNe in the southern hemisphere using four robotic telescopes of the PROMPT consortium which operate on Cerro Tololo. The immediate conclusion from thi s experience is the need of a telescope owned and operated by the CA TA team, in order to have full control over the optics, pointing and observation scheduling. With this in mind, CATA together with the Millennium Center for Supernova Science have decided to produce a new robotic telescope dedicated to SN search and follow – up, which will be remotely operated from Cerro Calán.

During 2008, several of the components needed to build up the robotic telescope have been purchased . The integration of the telesco pe and development of the necessary software to control the different electronic units is underway.

5 . - Application of the researching result into actions that contribute to increment the competitiveness of the Chilean economy

All the technological ini tiatives mentioned above involve professors of electrical engineering and engineering students from the associated universities and are providing an important seed for the development of high technology in the country. The experience to be gained by these engineers could have many applications in other fields of the Chilean economy such as in communications and mining industry. In addition, t he experience gained by the computer science students will contribute significantly to their skills which will direct ly broaden the know - how available in the local job market. For instance, the experience gained by them in the management of large databases could be very valuable for other areas of the economy such as banking, retail and service companies.

6 . - Activiti es of support to other national/international research groups

CATA is committed to support the groups at Universidad de Valparaiso and Universidad de La Serena. We have worked closely with Veronica Motta, Jura Borissova and Matthias Schriber of Universi dad de Valparaiso, and Rodolfo Barba of Universidad de La Serena to support them in operations and expansion of human resources. It was decided that most of our support would go into hiring postdoctoral fellows in this period. The group at Valparaiso hired two new postdocs: Saurahb Sharma (from India), and Roberto Muñoz (from Universidad Católica), and the group at La Serena also hired two postdocs: Guillermo Gunthardt (from Universidad de Córdoba, Argentina) and Mario Soto (Leiden University, The Netherlan ds). In addition, we supported Matthias Schriber trip to a conference in the USA.

In addition, the crea tion of Center Key Projects have not only brought astronomers of the three astronomy programs in close contact , but scientists from around the world are involved, implying a strong international networking in the years to come.

7 - . Activities of outreach, extension or others having an impact on the development of Chilean society

One of the goals of the CATA is to make the Chilean public highly aware o f work and discoveries by national astrophysicists and use astrophysical research as a model to promote scientific research. For this is very important to have a good cha nnel of connection with society. Accordingly, during 2008 CATA supported the creation of a communication group by hiring two journalists (Eliette Ángel and Natalie Huerta) that are expert on communications. This group is under the supervision of Professor Jose Maza. They are organizing a series of popular talks at the Cinetica of the Cultur al Center of Palacio La Moneda, which accommodates 220 persons. The first three talks, given during November of 2008, were based on the topic of supernovae. A total of 600 students of high schools and general public were delighted with talks about the gene ration of chemical elements, death of stars and the determination of cosmological distances. These conferences have been recorded in DVDs which will be part of an interactive about supernovas that will be sent to science teachers of high - schools.

Astronom ers from CATA have also participated in several outreach projects and activities, coordinated by the professional reporters, including publications in different media (newspapers, magazines, radio, web). The Science Museum ‘’Museo Interactivo Mirador’’ s tarted the regular display of the movie “El Universo,” which was produced with the support of CATA members.

Several CATA members have also actively participated in the organization of events associated to International Year of Astronomy (IYA), such as in the creation of the brochure, banners, posters and triptychs for the IYA by the Chilean node; the organization of two exhibitions: one comprising eight posters and stands for ESO telescopes and for Mapuche astronomy, and the other is “From Earth to the Uni verse” (FETTU), highlight of IYA’s activity. FETTU is a collection of astronomical images that will showcase the most dramatic views of our Universe. The images represent the incredible variety of astronomical objects that are known to exist – planets, com ets, stars, nebulae, galaxies and the clusters in which they congregate – and will be exhibited in numerous locations throughout the world in 2009. These exhibits, held in public parks, museums, and at other unique sites, will bring the wonders of the Univ erse to the public.

We carried out during 2008 Astronomy lectures for public school students in peripheral neighbourhoods of the city of Santiago. In these lectures the basic properties of supernovae were presented. The main properties of stars and the ph ysical mechanisms of energy generation were

presented in a simple manner. The formation of heavy elements and the final death of stars were explained as part of the supernova phenomenon. From October through December 2008 the conference was given in ten sc hools. A total of 661 students and 30 educators attended the lectures. To every school we attended we donated a set of four introductory books on astronomical matters for the School Library (this project was funded by the FONDAP Center for Astrophysics). F or more information see appendix.

Professors J. Maza and P. Rojo and Eliette Angel (journalist) travelled to Paris for the Opening Ceremony of the IYA, in the UNESCO. They were in charge of a stand, which exhibited information about astronomy in Chile an d the Fondap’s books collection. After Opening Ceremony, Angel participated in the Symposium 260 “The role of Astronomy in Society and Culture”, which covered a broad range of topics.

V. USE OF INVESTMENT FUNDS

In no more than three pages r eport the acquisitions in equipment and construction or improvement of infrastructure made with the Investment Funds. Indicate the use of the equipment and its impact . In case the acquisition has not yet been purchased, indicate the reason. The detail s of this item must be report ed in Appendix A1 4 and A15 .

1. - Astronomical instrumentation

With PBF 06 funding we have purchased, during 2008, two major pieces of equipment. The first one is a high sensitivity Vector Network Analyzer (Agilent PNA E8364C ), a two - po rt instrument that allows to completely characterize the behavior of electronic components in the r ange 50 MHz to 50 GHz . The second one is a high - precision (1 micrometer positioning) Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) Drilling and Milling Machine ( KERN Micro - und Feinwerktechnik MMP2522 ), which allows construction of the fundamental components of the ALMA Band 1 receiv er prototype cartridge (see Figure 1 ). During the year we have finalized an agreement with the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) for the procurement of a “ALMA Cartridge Test Cryostat”, with a matching compressor ( SHI CNA61D ) and cold head (SHI RDK - 3ST - R2) , manufactured by Sumitomo, with a temperature stability of 0.1 K at 15 K, the operation temperature of the receiver. The Millimeter - wave Laboratory and complementary machine shop have been totally reconditioned to install the newly acquired equipment. The vector network analyzer as well as the CNC machine have been installed and tested at the laboratory, under the supervisi on of Prof. Jorge May, Coordinator of the Laboratory Activities, and are at present completely operational .

A preliminary design of the proposed recei ver has been produced , and the electromagnetic modeling of several of its parts has been carried out. Th e incoming signal is brought to an optimized spline - profile corrugated horn via a lens. The first results with the optimized horn demonstrate an improved performance with respect to the traditional co nical corrugated horn . After the horn, the signal is div ided in its linear polarization components using an ortho - mode transducer (OMT), where we have scaled the OMT introduced by Asayama (NAOJ) for ALMA Band 4 receiver. Each polarization branch is first amplified and then down - converted independently. For amp lification, we use high electron mobility transistors (HEMT). In a first stage, we will test commercial amplifiers that will be integrated at our laboratories. Further work will be done through cooperation with California Institute of Technology and the Ma nchester University. Through this cooperation, Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits (MMIC) will be designed specially to cover the frequency range of Band1.

In order to minimize the added noise from the packaging structure we are working on the desi gn of a new packaging strategy for MMICs, to have a minimum of added parasitic components such as return loss. With this goal we have preliminary designed radial probes that could improve the rectangular probes traditionally used at these frequencies, usin g 3 dimensional electromagnetic simulators based on finite analysis (HFSS from Ansoft Corp.); the best rectangular probe has less than 20 dB of return loss, while the optimal radial probe has less than 25 dB. Given the frequency coverage of Band 1 and the availability of the LO signal, an upper sideband mixing scheme has been selected. For a high pass - band filter, to cancel out the lower sideband, we designed a multiple stage waveguide filter with a cut - off frequency of 30 GHz and image rejection better tha n 20 dB.

2. - High performance astronomical computing

During 2008, the main activity in this area was the purchase and in stallation of the new cluster, with 128 CPUs Xeon Intel of 2.0GHz, 512 cores, and 576 Gbyte RAM. This has so far 12 Tbyte disk s, soon to be increased in order to host the future Basal Center large databases. The computer was purchased in January, and received in mid March 2009. It is now undergoing software installation and testing. This cluster is the most powerful Astronomy com puter cluster available in South America,

The supercomputer is expected to be up and running during the first half of May, when we will start a battery of tests to ensure the correct functioning of the system. These tests include running two mid - size cos mological numerical simulations (1/100th of the Millenium Simulation, Springel et al. 2006) with two different codes, Gadget - 2 and Amiga. These simulations will be used to establish a benchmark for the full system, including processing power, disk access ( read and write speeds), gigabit connection between nodes, memory usage (should add up to 20% of the total available), and seamless function regarding the inclusion of the earlier 128 cores acquired during 2007.

A set of usage policies are being put togeth er which will provide the framework by which the computing resources will be allocated to different projects from all the BASAL institutions, and the rest of the community on a lower priority basis. These will be finalized by the end of the testing period (ends of May). We expect the supercomputer start running to its maximum on June 2009. Initial projects will be as planned, numerical simulations (from cosmological to stellar applications) and data storage and mining (from the start of operations of VISTA) .

3. - Robotic telescope

The robotic telescope will be a 50 cm automated telescope: composed of an optical tube, a CCD camera, a set of filters and a mount. It will be located in CTIO and remotely controlled from Cerro Calán. It will observe hundreds of targets every night with the aim of doubling the observing capabilities of the CHASE survey and trying new observing strategies and with new associated scientific goals.

The optical tube of the telescope was already purchased from the Italian company A&M and is expected to arrive in May 2009. It has a focal ratio of 12 with 50 cm aperture Ritchey – Chretien optics, custom – built by the Russian company Intes – Micro, in an open – truss carbon fiber optical tube. Before ordering this component, one member of the g roup traveled to Italy to talk personally with the manufacturers.

The camera is being purchased from the American company Finger Lakes Instrumentation and is expected to arrive in August 2009. It is a 2kx2k pixels FLI Proline camera, with a back illuminat ed, 95% peak quantum efficiency Fairchild 3041 CCD. The camera will be equipped with a 12 – slot filter wheel with state - of - the - art filters, which are being purchased from the Japanese company Asahi – Spectra. The choice of CCD was based on avoiding the potent ial presence of residual images in the imaging of targets, which currently dominate our SN candidate lists with the PROMPT telescopes, but also on maximizing the quantum efficiency, which is the most cost – effective way of collecting more photons per target .

The mount was purchased from the American company Astro – Physics Inc. and is already in Cerro Calán. It corresponds to the 3600 GTO “El Capitan” model, which is a German equatorial mount with sub - arcmin associated pointing errors, sub - deciarcsec tracking errors and a high load capacity. It can be easily automated, and has been built to withstand heavy use and harsh environmental conditions. The mount is fundamental for the correct working of a robotic telescope, since robust,

fast and precise pointing can allow visiting more targets per night and increasing the likelihood of detecting new events.

The dome of the telescope will be built in Chile as part of the planned technological research associated to MCSS and CATA. It will be automated to work in coor dination with the robotic telescope and will be remotely controlled. It is currently in its design phase, and we are in conversations with Chilean companies that show interest in the project. Even if the hardware is fundamental for the success of the robot ic telescope, the project’s long – term competitiveness will be determined by our software capabilities. The software must be able to control the telescope in real – time every night, plan observations to maximize the scientific output, reduce data with public ation quality in real time, process SN candidates through a state – of – the – art pipeline and communicate our findings to the astronomical community in a rapid fashion. We are currently developing and adapting existing software with this purpose, and will soon start collaborating with the electrical and mathematical engineering departments in this respect.

VI. LE SSONS LEARNED

The following section should provide information on possible difficulties in the execution of the Development Plan within the organiza tion, between CONICYT and your institution, or/and sponsor ing and participating institution ( s ) , researchers or any other combination of participants and activities considered . The idea is to resolve these difficulties to improve the present and future mana gement . ( If needed, refer to the steps to be taken towards a solution ).

Do not extend further than 2 pages. Indicate the need of confidentiality when required.

VII. INDICATORS

The following section is a summary of the information provid ed in the previous sections. Please complete the base line and the data for the reported period. When it does not correspond, indicate not applicable with N/A .

REPORTED PERIOD DEVELOPMENT BASE INDICATORS Basal AREAS LINE Other Financing Sources Funds GENERAL Number of Principal Investigators 10

Female Gender (%) of Principal Investigators 10%

Number of other Investigators 20

Female Gender (%) of other Investigators 15%

SCIENTIFIC Number of ISI publications 71 EXCELLENCE Num ber of no n ISI publications 57

Number of citations in ISI Journals 318 Percentage of publications Co - authored with national/international 90% researchers from other institutions Percentage of publications Co - authored with researchers of the Ce nter 34%

Average number of citations per article 5

Number of international exchange networks

Number of na t ional presentations/conferences 6

Number of inter na t ional presentations/conferences 23

TRAINING OF Number of under graduate students HUMAN RESOURCES Number of female (%) undergraduate students

Number of completed undergraduate theses

Numbe r of Master’s students 26

Numbe r of female (%) Master’s students 41%

Number of completed master theses 6

Numbe r of Ph.D . students 38

Numbe r of female (%) Ph.D. students 37%

Numbe r of completed Ph.D. theses 7

Numbe r of posdocs working in the Center 27

Numbe r of female posdocs(%) working in the Center 19% Numbe r of stays/visits from students or researche rs from other Centers or 20 projects (national and international) Numbe r of stays/visits to other institutions by students or researchers of 1 3 the Center

REPORTED PERIOD DEVELOPMENT BASE INDICATORS Basal AREAS LINE Other Financing Sources Funds TECHNOLOGICAL Number of patents application TRANSFER AND LINKAGE WITH OTHER SECTORS N umber of patents granted OF CHILEAN ECONOMY AND Number of licenses and/or Technology Transfer Agreement SOCIETY Number of spin - offs rising from the Center

Number of doctorates and postdoctorates inserted in the Industry Number of particip ations in instances of public policy definition (consulting

councils, advisory committees) Number of participations in other relevant institutions Amount and % of the Center´s income from private sector companies (in

cash and in kind – non cash – contributions can be considered). Amount and % of the Center´s income from other non - government sources (in cash and in kind – non cash – contributions can be considered). SUPPORT TO Percentage of ISI publications co - authore d with nat ional researchers (from

OTHER other institutions). RESEARCH Percentage of theses co - tutored with national researchers from other GROUPS institutions. % of equipment available to researchers who are not part of the Center.

OUTREACH Number of o utreach and/or extension activities. 30 ACTIVITIES Total number of people attending to outreach and/or extension activities. 3300

Number of times the project appears in mass media. 5 Number of documents, reports, proceedings resulting from

outreach/extram ural events or activities.

OTHERS

Figure 1 : The Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) machine at the mechanical shop of the Mm - wave Laboratory in Cerro Calán.

APPENDIX ES

Attached tables (A1 – A16) and requested documents.

1) Scientific an d Technological Research a) Publications Enclose all the information of the Publications resulting from the informed period in Appendix A1, A2 and A3. Do not include manuscripts in preparation or submitted in this section, only copy of the preprints of art icles published. Indicate those international collaborators in the author’s list of each paper or manuscript by underlining their names. Include a digital copy of each paper published.

b) Awards Report this item in Appendix A4.

c) Organization of Scientific Ev ents Report the congress es , courses, conferences, workshops or symposia organized by the Center in Appendix A5. Include a digital copy of the abstract s or full manuscript of the presentations and a ttach a digital copy of the front page of the scientific e vent.

d) Participation in Scientific Events. Report the participation in congress es , courses, conferences, workshops or symposia in Appendix A6. Include a digital copy of the abstract s or full manuscript of the presentations and a ttach a digital copy of the front page of the scientific event.

2) Training of human resources of Excellence a) Theses Report this item in Appendix A8. If the theses are already finished, please attach a digital copy of the abstract and the subject index.

b) Postdoctoral Fellows Report al l postdoctoral fellows working in the Center, regardless the funding sources , in Appendix A9.

3) Applications of the result of research into actions that contribute to increment the competitiveness of Chilean economy

 National or International patents appli ed for o r granted (Report this item in Appendix A11)  Generation of licenses and sp in - offs, services or other initiatives ( Report this item in Appendix A13 )  P articipation in public policy events and the private sector (Report this item in Appendix A12)

4) Support to other research groups

 Indicate the pu blications with the co - authorship of researchers from other institutions (Report this item in Appendix A1, A2 y A3) .  Indicate the t heses co - directed with researchers from other institutions (Report th is item in Appendix A8)  Indicate R esearch Stage (Report this item in Appendix A7)  Indicate the p articipation in R&D Projects directed by other Research Group (Report this item in Appendix A7)

5) Outreach Activities

Report th ese s activities in Appendix A1 0 .