Rationale

The European Solar Telescope (EST) project was born in 2007, in a context where the US ATST telescope project was uppermost in the discussions. It soon appeared that a unique world solar ground-based instrument of the 4-meter class was insufficient to support the needs of both communities. On the other hand, two complementary instruments located in comparable sites ensure the development of Europe-US collaborations and permit the european community to develop key synergies and to demonstrate its expertise in instrumentation and its scientific excellence.

The European Solar Telescope Design Study (EST/DS) was financed by the European Union in early 2008. This Design Study will end in early 2011. EST is now a major project of our discipline and first priority was assigned by ASTRONET among the medium-sized projects. In France, it is time now to prepare the transition from 2011 to the next preparatory phase as well as the project continuation. This leads to do a first inventory of the different subjects in which the French community is involved and to think to the scientific priorities to be developed in the future.

In this prospect, the PNST ("Programme National Soleil-Terre") of the CNRS/INSU ("Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique"/"Institut National des Sciences de l'Univers") has wished that a workshop be organized that will gather the French community beyond those already involved in the EST Design Study, and permit to have a discussion about the different sides of the project, among them:

• the progress state and the expected developments in instrumentation and data management in the different Workpackages for the Design Study
• the THEMIS present data analysis and using and the objectives to be reached within the EST scope
• the developments in theory and modeling presently achieved from THEMIS data and to be done in the EST prospect
• the synergy with the other ground-based and space-borne solar instruments and the ways of study to be considered for the instrumental projects contemporary with EST

One outcome of this workshop could be to initiate working groups about some subjects or objectives to be defined at the workshop in order to organize a collective reflection for the end of the EST Design Study and for the EST project future development. The more mature ATST is now in the approved initial financing phase.

SOC:

• T. Amari
• T. Appourchaux
• V. Bommier
• B. Gelly
• A. López Ariste
• F. Paletou

Contacts:

• V. Bommier
• B. Gelly