21st Synthesis Imaging Workshop

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The NRAO is hosting the 21st Synthesis Imaging Summer Workshop in Socorro, New Mexico, on 26th May - 3rd June 2026. The workshop will consist of a week of lectures on aperture synthesis theory and techniques at a level appropriate for graduate students in astrophysics, covering both radio interferometry fundamentals and state-of-the-art methods and techniques. The program will also include discussion groups, and tutorials demonstrating data collection, calibration, and imaging of various types of observations, including new data from the Very Large Array (VLA), Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), and a special tour to the VLA site.

We are excited to announce that this year the workshop will include a session on optical interferometry and a visit to the Magdalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer (MROI) site.

The school will be an in-person only event. Resources, including recordings and slides from the lectures, will be available online after the workshop.

Registration is now open...

Cosmic Horizons Conference

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The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) invites scientists to participate in the CosmicAI Horizons Conference held in Charlottesville, Virginia, July 13-16, 2026.  Registration is now open.

The recent revolution in AI is fundamentally changing how astronomers observe, explore, analyze, and model astronomical data. The Cosmic Horizons Conference aims to bring together researchers who are actively developing and applying AI/ML methods in astronomy.

Read more...

VLA+VLBA to ngVLA Transition Plan Report

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The preliminary transition plan described in the new report presents a reduction that would enable the VLA and VLBA to conduct high-profile science during the construction of the ngVLA in the context of a reduced science portfolio.

Read the new report (arXiv: 2501.06333) assembled by the Transition Advisory Group (TAG).

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The NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory and NSF Green Bank Observatory are facilities of the U.S. National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.

Founded in 1956, the NSF NRAO provides state-of-the-art radio telescope facilities for use by the international scientific community. NSF NRAO telescopes are open to all astronomers regardless of institutional or national affiliation. Observing time on NSF NRAO telescopes is available on a competitive basis to qualified scientists after evaluation of research proposals on the basis of scientific merit, the capability of the instruments to do the work, and the availability of the telescope during the requested time. NSF NRAO also provides both formal and informal programs in education and public outreach for teachers, students, the general public, and the media.

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