Untitled - Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de l'Observatoire de Grenoble

several important studies that anticipate the harvest of Planck results: 1) polarization of the emission of diffuse
interstellar dust, 2) anomalous dust emissivity and 3) a catalogue of about a hundred (13 arcmin size) bright
point sources. These results were obtained from a 12-hour Archeops balloon flight in the Arctic sky in 2002,
using HFI technology (Benoît et al. 2003a, b; Tristram et al. 2005)
The Planck satellite will allow the ultimate measurements of CMB anisotropies with a sensitivity about ten
times better than the WMAP achievement and an angular resolution 3 times better. An accurate determination
to within one percent will be obtained for the ten or so cosmological parameters describing our Universe (Hubble
constant, curvature, cold, neutrino, and baryonic matter content, dark energy and its equation of state,...). We
are involved in the ground-based and in-flight calibration of HFI as well as in some data processing pipeline, in
collaboration with other Grenoble laboratories (Santos-Renault team at LPSC, Benoît-Camus team at CRTBT).
In the coming years, we intend to make an optimal use of the Archeops then Planck submillimetre maps
for in-depth scientific results. In the mean time, we take part in the developments of new CCD-like bolometer
cameras, in particular for the IRAM 30m telescope (the program DCMB, led by A. Benoît, is funded by INSU,
PNC, PN Astroparticules and CNES). These cameras could provide a useful complementary tool to the space
experiments (Herschel, Planck) and Alma which will all arrive between 2007 and 2012.
4.6 The needs of Astromol : accretion and recruitment
Our plans are admittedly scientifically very ambitious. Our scientific record endorses our ambitions, and pushes
us towards far reachable goals. However, to fully exploit the capacities and knowledges we have developed so
far, and to keep having a leading role in our research lines, we evidently need to become bigger in terms of
permanent and not-permanent staff, and not by a number of one. We aim to enlarge our group by accreting
senior researchers and, possibly Post-Docs (which, as known, are extremely rare in France). However, there is
an evident need to increase the number of permanent stuff members by hiring young researchers. In the past we
have been forming several of them, and good candidates are indeed available. To be more specific, the following
major areas require urgently young permanent researchers in the next four years (of this quadriennal):
• At the short horizon 2006-2010, we have the big challenge of being able to scientifically fully exploit the
opportunity we have been creating for ourselves and France of the Herschel HIFI Key Program “Spectral
Line Surveys of Star Formation Regions”. Note that this is the largest Herschel HIFI Key Program in
terms of hours leaded by a French researcher and with the largest amount of French HIFI Guaranteed
Time. We feel therefore mandatory for us to make it a scientific success. While we have been developing all
the important tools to exploit at best this occasion (involvement in “The Molecular Universe” European
Network -§4.4-, spectral surveys with ground based millimeter and sub-millimiter telescopes -§4.3-...),
there is clearly an urgent need of accretion in terms of permanent staff. Specifically, we need to hire
two young researchers with experience in molecular line emission, line identification and modeling of
protostellar environments, the first as soon as possible (2006/2007), to participate to the preparation of
the programs (doing observations, modeling and interpretation of the data), and the second one once
Herschel has launched (2008/2009) to reinforce Astromol in the exploitation of the Herschel HIFI data.
• The physics and chemistry of the proto-planetary disks is a hot field of research where LAOG has a
prominent position in the international community. Astromol entered this field of research only recently,
but with successes which authorize ambitious plans (§3.5). In addition, the proto-planetary disks is
also a theme of research of the FOST team, and the interplay between the two teams has been already
very fruitful. This and the complementarity of the different observational tecniques (from X-rays to IR
to radio observations) makes LAOG a privileged and unique site in France for developing this line of
research, notably the chemistry in proto-planetary disks. However, in order to capitalize and expand the
Astromol activity on the proto-planetary disk field of research, Astromol needs additional manpower, and
particularly on the modeling of the chemistry.Considering the timescale of the evolution of our research,
we envisage that a young researcher will be in demand by 2007/2008.
• In the context of the ALMA exploitation, IRAM collaboration and the LAOG-IRAM European Center of
Expertise for Interferometry in Astronomy (CEXIA: see Executive Summary) Astromol is strongly solicited
to take a major role, as it is the natural interlocutor with IRAM and its research heavily does and will
use millimeter (and submillimeter) interferometric facilities. Again, Astromol has indeed the capacities
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