ExGal-Twin: Excellence in Galaxies - Twinning the IAC
ExGal-Twin is a Widening Horizon Europe project led by IAC to boost excellence in extragalactic research and project management aiming to strengthen international collaboration with our partners: CNRS-ObAS, Groningen University and Durham University.
- Join us in Groningen for the ExGal-Twin Radio Astronomy School & 2nd Project Meeting (13–17 Apr 2026). 🚨 Registration closes 31 Jan! 🔗 www.astro.rug.nl/exgal-twin/
- On Dec 11, 2025, the 2nd European Project Management WG met online & at IAC. It was approved the Canary Islands network proposal & chose the acronym CIARMA. Next meeting: Mar 19, 2026 - Thanks to all WG members! #exgaltwin #CIARMA #iac_astrophysics #ITC #ACIISI #HorizonEurope #REA #HorizonEurope
- On Dec 15, Prof. Johan Knapen presented ExGal-Twin as a success story at the Horizon Europe WIDERA WP26/27 online session and Anselmo Sosa Méndez (IAC) presented the Widening instruments WP2026–2027. Organized by FECYT / Spanish Ministry of Science. #HorizonEurope #WIDERA #ExGalTwin #REA
- The ExGal-Twin Masterclass in Radio Astronomy and Data Visualization was a great success! 🚀🔭 Many thanks to our lecturers from the University of Groningen, Profs Rafaella Morganti, Tom Oosterloo, and Thijs van der Hulst and to Anelise Audibert and @junais.bsky.social for the excellent organization.
- Tonight in La Laguna! 🌌🍻 Holiday edition of Astronomy on Tap – Canary Islands at Club El Búho (19:00). Featuring talks by Jerry Zhang (ES) and Dr. Eirini Angeloudi (EN). Organized by ExGal-Twin postdocs with PhD students from EDUCADO. See you there! 🌟 bsky.app/profile/aot-...
- Masterclass on Radio Astronomy and Data Visualization 🚀🔭 Great sessions on Radio Astronomy with Profs. Morganti & Oosterloo, plus a hands-on Data Visualization Practicum with Prof. van der Hulst. Two inspiring and productive days ✨ #RadioAstronomy #DataVisualization #ExGalTwin #REA
- Masterclass on Radio Astronomy & Data Visualization. Day 1🚀 Yesterday, we kicked off with an Introduction to Data Visualization by Prof. Thijs van der Hulst (Kapteyn Institute). A great start to a week of learning! ✨ #DataViz #ExGalTwin #IAC_astrphysics #GroningenUniversity #HorizonEurope #REA
- 🚀 Masterclass on Radio Astronomy & Data Visualization 🗓 1-4 Dec | 📍 IAC & Online Tutors: Raffaella Morganti, Tom Oosterloo, Thijs van der Hulst (ASTRON/UniversityofGroningen), Anelise Audibert & Junais (ExGal-Twin IAC). Looking forward to it!
- 🎃 Astronomy on Tap–Canary Islands: Halloween Edition! @aot-canarias.bsky.social🌌 Tonight at Club El Búho (La Laguna, Tenerife) doors 18:00h, talks 19:00. Two spooky-cool talks from IAC researchers: David Aguado and Zahra Sharbaf. Proudly supported by ExGal-Twin & EDUCADO Network.👻✨
- 🍻✨ Huge success for the first Astronomy on Tap – Canary Islands “AstroTragos” supported by ExGal-Twin project. Over 100 people packed Buho Bar (La Laguna) for a night of science and laughter 💫 💀🎃 Next up: Halloween special on 6 November, with spooky space stories, cosmic trivia, and more surprises!
- Laura Riba, ExGal-Twin Project Manager at IAC, visited @durham.ac.uk last week to exchange best practices in project management. A productive visit that included a tour of the COSMA supercomputers. Thanks to all involved! #ExGalTwin #HorizonEurope #Durhamuniversity #REA
- Dr. Junais (@junais.bsky.social - ExGal-Twin, IAC) was interviewed by RNE after new research that revealed hidden structures and a dramatic past in Malin 2, one of the largest spiral galaxies. 📄 A&A: doi.org/10.1051/0004... 🗞 El Mundo: www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-sa... 📢 IAC: www.iac.es/en/outreach/...
- ExGal-Twin is proud to support the first @aot-canarias.bsky.social event in the Canary Islands, taking place tomorrow, October 2nd, in Tenerife. These fun, informal science talks in bars aim to make astronomy accessible to everyone. Two IAC astronomers will speak in both Spanish and English.
- 🌍 On Sept 23, the first European Project Management Working Group meeting took place at #IAC as part of #ExGalTwin. The group aims to build a new network of EU project managers in the Canary Islands. #HorizonEurope #EuropeanProjects #REA @fundacionull.bsky.social @ull.es
- ✨ The Durham Advanced School on Astrophysical Simulations (Sept 13–15) was a huge success! Over 45 students joined expert-led lectures and tutorials. Big thanks to all participants and Durham University for hosting! #exgaltwin #iac_astrophysics #durhamuniversity #REA #horizoneurope #simulations
- 🔭 Prof. Johan Knapen, PI and Coordinator of ExGal-Twin, spoke at the Astronomical Surveys & Big Data 3 symposium hosted by BAO in Armenia. Talk: "Using Astroinformatics to Train Scientists" 🔗 Event: lnkd.in/gX26qvzn #ExGalTwin #EDUCADO #IAC_Astrophysics #HorizonEurope #REA
- 🌌 ExGal-Twin at LSST@Europe7: Prof. Johan Knapen and Dr. Junais (both on the Org. Committee). Dr. Junais presented new ultra-deep imaging results of Malin 2, revealing unseen structures. Great talks by: Minh Ngoc Le (EDUCADO) – Low and Giulia Golini (IAC) #ExGalTwin #EDUCADO #IAC #LSSTEurope7 #REA
- Busy summer for our ExGal-Twin postdocs! 🌞 In August, Junais joined a conference in Benasque (Spain) marking 10 years since the discovery of Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies (UDGs). He shared new deep imaging results, sparking great discussions on these faint and puzzling galaxies.
- In July, our ExGal-Twin postdoc Anelise Audibert presented her work at the Jets on the Rocks workshop in Sexten, Italy 🇮🇹. The event brought together experts to discuss how radio jets from supermassive black holes shape galaxies. #ExGalTwin #GalaxyEvolution #RadioAstronomy #REA #HorizonEurope
- Durham Advanced School on Astrophysical Simulations – Days 2 & 3. Day 2: lectures on cosmological initial conditions and Eulerian hydrodynamics, plus a hands-on AREPO session with Dr. Eva Durán Camacho. Day 3: Lagrangian hydrodynamics with Dr. Matthieu Schaller, featuring a simulation with our logo!
- 🌌 Yesterday, the Durham Advanced School on Astrophysical Simulations kicked off at Durham University! PhD students and researchers are diving into both theoretical and practical aspects of astrophysical simulations. Big thanks to the Institute of Computational Simulations for organizing! 🙏
- The wait is over! Next week the Durham Advanced School on Astrophysical Simulations kicks off at @durhamuniversity.bsky.social We’re finalizing preparations for this international event with 50 students and ~12 lecturers 👩💻👨🏫 Big thanks to the DU-ICC for hosting! 📸 More updates and photos coming soon!
- 🚀 Our postdoc Eva Durán Camacho (ExGal-Twin) gave a talk at SFDE2025 in Vietnam on Milky Way structure and dynamics She also presented a seminar at National Cheng Kung, University in Taiwan on ISM dynamics 🛰️👏 Congrats, Eva! #ExGalTwin #SFDE2025 #MilkyWay #Simulations#REA #HorizonEurope #WomenInSTEM
- This week, ExGal-Twin PM Laura Riba & Elizabeth Carrillo (OTAI-IAC), visited Kapteyn Institute (@univgroningen) to exchange best practices in proposal prep & project mgmt. Thanks to Lucia, Edwin & Reynier for the warm welcome! 🤝✨ #ExGalTwin #HorizonEurope #Astrophysics #ScienceCollab #IAC #RUG #REA
- 📢 New publication in Nature Astronomy: Prof. Johan Knapen (ExGal-Twin & EDUCADO PI) and co-authors, share practical advice on writing strong proposals and job apps in academia. Title: How to prepare competitive proposals and job applications.🔗 rdcu.be/evDT8 #Exgaltwin #Astronomy #AcademicCareers
- 🚀 Our postdoc Anelise Audibert co-organized the session “Unleashing the Power” at #EAS2025Cork, sparking great discussions on black holes, AGN, and outflows across all scales! She also gave a talk on elusive ‘weak’ black hole jets in quasar host galaxies. #ExGalTwin #BlackHoles #AGN #WomenInSTEM
- 🚀 Great news from Cork! Our Coordinator and PI, Johan Knapen, gave a talk at the #EAS2025Cork session “European-African collaboration for the construction and support of existing and future African astronomical facilities” at the Annual Meeting. #Exgaltwin #HorizonEurope #REA
- 🔭🌌 Impressive work by the ExGal-Twin postdoc @junais.bsky.social! This is a great example of how deep imaging can transform our understanding of galaxy structure 👏 #Exgaltwin #iacastrophysics #HorizonEurope #REA #ResearchExcellence #DeepImaging #Galaxies
- 🌟 Exciting news! 🌟 Carme Gallart (ExGal-Twin extragalactic research team) has been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant for her project ChronoGal, studying the Galaxy's evolution using Gaia data. A major recognition of her excellence and our team’s impact! 👏🌌 #ExGalTwin #Astrophysics #REA #ERC #ChronoGal
- 🔭 IAC PhD student and ExGal-Twin team member Alicia Rivero collaborated with the Dynamics Group at the @obsstrasbourg.bsky.social from May 17–25, 2025, on an exciting project focused on orbit integration. 🚀💫 #exgaltwin #iac_astrophisics #horizoneurope #cnrs #ull
- 🌌 Prof. Martin Ward's public lecture on the James Webb Telescope drew an almost full house yesterday at the Museum of Science and the Cosmos in Tenerife, part of the ExGal-Twin project. A stellar evening of science, space, and the search for life! #ExGalTwin #JWST #ScienceOutreach #HorizonEurope
- 📅 Save the date! Public lecture by Prof. Martin Ward (Durham Univ.) on the James Webb Telescope 🚀 🗓️ 23.05.25 – 17:30h 📍 Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos, Tenerife In English with Spanish translation Thanks UC3-IAC for the poster! #Exgaltwin #IAC #DurhamUniversity #HorizonEurope #JWST
- Day 2: 2025 ExGal-Twin Regional Workshop wrapped up with key insights and forward planning! 💡 Ana Branco shared top tips for managing Horizon Europe projects effectively. 🤖 Johan Knapen and Claudia Guerrero (IAC) explored how AI can boost – and challenge – proposal prep and project execution.
- 📌 2025 ExGal-Twin Workshop in EU PM-Guest Speaker: Prof. Reynier Peletier – Univ. of Groningen, NL. We were honored to welcome @reyn123.bsky.social from the @rug.nl, partner institution of @exgaltwin.bsky.social & EDUCADO, for an inspiring session titled: Opportunities and Challenges in EU Funding.
- 📌 2025 ExGal-Twin Workshop in EU PM–R&D&I Entities from the Canary Islands. We had the pleasure of hearing from R&D&I entities from the Canary Islands: ACIISI, LPRC, ITC & PTFSA. A great opportunity to exchange insights and grow stronger together, thank you! 🤝 #exgaltwin #horizoneurope
- 📌 2025 ExGal-Twin Regional Workshop in EU Project Management- Dynamics in Action: In our group sessions, we worked collaboratively to identify key challenges and propose innovative solutions for managing European projects 💭🗺️ 🔗 #ExGalTwin #HorizonEurope #iac_astrofísica
- 📌 2025 ExGal-Twin Workshop in EU PM–We learned from Mr. Sosa, Head of Technology Transfer and Institutional Actions Office and Prof. Knapen, PI of the project and coordinator of several European projects at IAC, who shared insights into challenges and opportunities faced by both PM & researchers 🚀
- 📍 2025 ExGal-Twin Regional Workshop in EU Project Management - Day 1- Welcome - April 23rd 🙏 Our sincere thanks to Mr. Javier Franco (ACIISI) for his warm welcome, and to the twelve participating entities for their enthusiastic commitment to collaborative innovation 💡
- ⏳The countdown begins! Soon, we'll meet at the Exgal-Twin Regional Workshop in EU Project Management. An amazing opportunity to learn and connect with R&D&i institutions from the Canary Islands. We’re looking forward to the exciting discussions and collaborations ahead! #exgaltwin #HorizonEurope
