EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION FOR SOLAR TELESCOPES
The European Association for Solar Telescopes (EAST) was founded in 2006 by a group of research institutions from 14 European countries. Four more countries have joined since then.
The goal of EAST is to ensure access of European solar astronomers to world-class high-resolution ground-based observing facilities. In order to achieve that goal, EAST promotes the development, construction and operation of a next-generation large aperture European Solar Telescope (EST) in the Canaries.
Furthermore, EAST coordinates the operation and scientific use of existing high-resolution optical solar telescopes on the ground in Europe, and channels efforts of its members to participate in other solar facilities such as the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope. EAST facilitates access to these solar facilities also for European solar physicists who are not EAST members, encouraging their participation in EAST.
Current EAST management
- President: Mats Carlsson (Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Oslo, Norway).
- Vice President: Mihalis Mathioudakis (Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom).
- Executive Director: Salvo Guglielmino (INAF/Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Italy).