Observatoire de Paris - PSL - Centre de recherche en astronomie et astrophysique

The interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, a messenger from the far reaches of our galaxy

Frederique Auffret — 2026-06-24T17:36:14Z

A major study of Comet 3I/ATLAS, the third interstellar object identified to date. Using a combination of observations made with the James Webb Space Telescope and the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) radio telescope network, scientists were able to analyze its chemical composition in detail

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First light in the laboratory for the French AIRS instrument on the ARIEL mission

Frederique Auffret — 2026-06-22T15:44:43Z

Under testing since March 2026 at the Paris Observatory - PSL, the French AIRS spectrometer for the future ARIEL telescope has successfully reached a crucial milestone by providing an initial measurement that meets expectations using a cell containing methane gas.
Ariel is the M4 mission of ESA's “Cosmic Vision” program, scheduled for launch in 2032. It is a mission entirely dedicated to studying the atmospheres of exoplanets: over the course of four years, it will examine approximately (…)

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The Paris Observatory - PSL welcomes the selection of the Plasma Observatory mission by ESA

Frederique Auffret — 2026-06-16T16:29:19Z

The ESA Science Programme Committee has selected the Plasma Observatory mission, a future mission dedicated to the study of plasmas in Earth's magnetospheric systems, in which LIRA's teams are closely involved.

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France becomes a full member of the SKA Observatory

FICHET Fabien — 2026-06-04T12:10:46Z

France has officially become the 14th member state of the Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO), the intergovernmental organisation building and operating the world's largest radio astronomy observatory.
[Read the official press release by the French Governement and SKAO]
The SKA Observatory will operate two complementary telescopes: SKA-Low in Australia, dedicated to low-frequency radio astronomy, and SKA-Mid in South Africa, observing at higher radio frequencies. Together, they (…)

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First ever live observation of the rotation of a planetary nursery

Frederique Auffret — 2026-06-01T16:17:26Z

An international team led by a CNRS researcher from the Paris Observatory - PSL at the Laboratory of Instrumentation and Research in Astrophysics has achieved a world first by directly observing the rotation of a protoplanetary disc using the emission from the dust grains that make it up. Shedding new light on the mechanisms at work during the formation of planetary systems, this study is published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics on 1st June 2026.
The rotation of a (…)

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SKAO: the French astrophysics community rallies behind the world's largest radio observatory

Frederique Auffret — 2026-05-28T16:08:35Z

From 19 to 21 May 2026, the French astrophysics community gathered at the Meudon campus of the Paris Observatory - PSL, for the conference ‘SKA: an observatory for the whole community', organised under the auspices of the INSU's Specialised Commission for Astronomy and Astrophysics (CSAA).
Nearly 200 colleagues of all ages – including both specialists and non-specialists in radio astronomy research, engineering and high-performance computing – have come together to pursue a shared goal: (…)

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Elsa Huby, winner of the 2026 Scientific Grand Prize from the Charles Defforey Foundation – Institut de France

Frederique Auffret — 2026-05-21T17:10:04Z

On May 20, 2026, the Charles Defforey Foundation – Institut de France will award its 2026 Grand Prix scientifique, worth 400,000 euros, to Elsa Huby for her FIRST project (Fibered Imager foR a Single Telescope), which aims to push the limits of telescopes' angular resolution.
Elsa Huby is an astronomer at the Paris Observatory - PSL, specializing in high-angular-resolution and high-contrast instrumentation. Her research lies at the intersection of physics, optics, and astronomical (…)

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150 years ago, the founding of astrophysics in Meudon

Frederique Auffret — 2026-05-19T12:57:41Z

In 2026, we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the founding of an observatory in Meudon, an event that marked the beginnings of institutional astrophysics in France.

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Solar eclipse on 12 August 2026: the Paris Observatory – PSL launches the ÉclipSEOP app

Frederique Auffret — 2026-05-15T15:30:49Z

To mark the solar eclipse on 12 August 2026, the Paris Observatory – PSL is offering the general public a web application designed to help them prepare for and observe this major astronomical event: ÉclipSEOP.
Available free of charge online, the ÉclipSEOP app provides all the information you need to observe the eclipse from anywhere on Earth.
Thanks to a simple and intuitive interface, users can select a location on an interactive map showing the eclipse's path of totality. In just a (…)

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EQUIP-G Call for Proposals – Provision of quantum gravimeters

Frederique Auffret — 2026-05-05T13:23:58Z

The European EQUIP-G project, led by the CNRS and coordinated by the Laboratoire Temps Espace at the Paris Observatory – PSL, is launching a call for proposals aimed at the scientific community. Open until 31 July 2026 (18:00 CET), this call enables any European public body to apply to use a quantum gravimeter to carry out field measurements, particularly for applications in geosciences and geodesy. A world first.
Gravity measurements are a unique tool for imaging the subsurface, as they (…)

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