For more than half a century, radio interferometry has revolutionised our view of the Universe. New phenomena, such as relativistic motion in AGN have been discovered, and a wealth of detail has been revealed about a wide variety of astronomical sources, from nearby stars to the most distant galaxies. These discoveries have been enabled by radio interferometry's routine capability to deliver images with sub-milliarcsecond resolution and micro-arcsecond precision astrometry. Major new advances in both the interferometric technique and the science it delivers are expected over the coming decade. This conference will take a look at the past, present and future of radio interferometry, as the astronomical community prepares for the next big step forward, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA).
The meeting coincides with the retirement of Prof. Richard T. Schilizzi, Director of the SKA Project Development Office (SPDO) and past director of the Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE). We celebrate the major contribution Richard has made to the field with a scientific programme that will address the following topics: key historical developments in interferometry, the study of micro-quasars and AGN, the development of advanced interferometry techniques and new calibration algorithms, future interferometers (incl. ALMA, SKA and the SKA pathfinders & precursors), mm and sub-mm interferometry, precision spacecraft navigation, geodetic VLBI and Space VLBI.
