JIVE hosted a European Commission PR day on 7 July 2005. On the evening before, the visiting journalists (more than 60) were entertained with a barbecue at Westerbork.
The highlight of the day was the demonstration of e-VLBI - a technique in which radio telescopes are connected to the supercomputer at JIVE via a high-speed optical fibre network (GEANT, operated by DANTE). Preliminary results from the successful radio and VLBI observations of the ESA Huygens probe as it descended through the atmosphere of Titan in January was also presented by JIVE scientific staff.
The barbecue at Westerbork on the night before the event, with additional entertainment provided by Richard Strom making a comet.
The VIPs and journalists arrive at JIVE before the Commisioner decommisions the tape drives to usher in the new era of e-VLBI.
And yes, there were live fringes!
Presentations by Commissioner Potocnik, Maria van der Hoeven, the Dutch Minister for Education Culture and Science and the coordinators of the various astronomical projects supported by the EC, followed by questions from the assembled journalists. There was also time for conversations and a tour of the JIVE facilities.
