06 VO annual report FINAL - Vatican Observatory

the University of Arizona. When the need arose to establish
another observing station for the Vatican Observatory,
Father Coyne was able to establish a formal collaboration
in 1980 between the Specola Vaticana (the Observatory’s
name in Italian) and the University of Arizona.
This led to the establishment of the Vatican Observatory
Research Group (VORG) at the university. The clearest
and most tangible sign of the fruitfulness of this collaboration
is the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope
(VATT), which was inaugurated in 1993 on Mt. Graham.
The existence and continued operation of VATT is possible
thanks to the generosity of our friends of the Vatican
Observatory Foundation.
Under Father Coyne’s directorship a new period began at
the Specola. The Observatory’s astronomers and astrophysicists now spend 10 months at the VORG
in Tucson, although Castel Gandolfo continues to be the Observatory’s administrative home, hosting
the work of non-observing staff members and guest researchers. The Director’s office is located in
Castel Gandolfo, along with the Observatory’s library and computers. During the summer months,
staff members return there to discuss observatory programs,
and to participate in scientific meetings and the
Vatican Observatory Summer Schools.
The Vatican Observatory Summer Schools (VOSS) are
another major achievement of Father Coyne’s directorship.
We are very proud of the success of our summer
schools in encouraging young scholars to establish professional
friendships with faculty and students. We have
now held ten VOSS, producing around 250 alumni plus
faculty members. Around 85% of the alumni are still active
in research and/or are teaching astrophysics, many of
them at major research centers throughout the world. I am
proud to be an alumnus of the 2003 VOSS.
Under Father Coyne’s leadership, the Specola has flourished.
It has had a major impact on the mass media and
popular culture. Consequently, the Vatican Observatory
is a highly visible symbol of the Church’s engagement
with the contemporary world. The Observatory has also
7
George
Coyne, S.J.,
retired in 2006
after 28 years
as Director of
the Vatican
Observatory.
José Funes, S.J., new Director of the Vatican
Observatory
made its mark in interdisciplinary studies. In our service to the Holy See, the science–faith dialog is
a natural consequence of our scientific activities. Our two-fold competency makes us special interlocutors
in the dialogue between the Church and the world of Science. Father Coyne was a driving
force behind this dialogue through the organization of many meetings and the publications generated
by them.
A NNUAL REPORT 2006