JIVE Director Agnieszka Słowikowska opened JIVE's 30th anniversary session at the EVN Symposium in Bonn. © Eduardo Ros
At the European VLBI Network Symposium in Bonn from 2 to 6 September, we celebrated 30 years of JIVE with our community.
During a special 90-minute session on the first day of the Symposium, we reflected on JIVE's history while looking toward its future. We heard from key individuals who have shaped JIVE into what it is today and continue to drive its potential. A video was also shown, featuring last year’s users sharing their experiences at JIVE. The day concluded with a lively quiz about JIVE, filled with humour and friendly competition.
JIVE Through Time
JIVE Director Agnieszka Słowikowska opened the anniversary session by focusing on the people behind JIVE's success. She began by acknowledging those who made the event possible, with a personal mention of Anton Zensus, Director at MPIfR Bonn. She recognised the engineers, researchers, administrative staff, and partners for their vital role in JIVE’s achievements, while the names of support scientists who have worked at JIVE over the years were displayed on the screen. In her brief retrospective, she referred to the directors of the five European radio observatories that contributed to JIVE's foundation—especially Richard Schilizzi, who envisioned JIVE's creation and served as its first director. Słowikowska also acknowledged all of JIVE's directors for their unique contributions to its achievements, briefly explaining JIVE's role within the EVN, its involvement in cutting-edge European projects, and its potential future in radio astronomy.
Słowikowska further highlighted the significance of new and upcoming research infrastructures, such as the SKA and ngVLA, which she described as a renaissance in radio astronomy. The Square Kilometre Array, in particular, presents JIVE with promising new opportunities, especially during its first phase, when a global VLBI network will complement the new instrument. Looking ahead, Słowikowska noted that JIVE aims to establish itself as a key European SKA-VLBI node.
She also emphasised the ongoing growth of the EVN family, pointing to recent tests with MeerKAT and Japanese stations Misuda and Usuda, and the first fringes currently being planned with the 40-meter Thai dish.
JIVE's Chief Scientist Huib Jan van Langevelde, who served as JIVE's director from 2007 to 2017 and oversaw its transition to an ERIC, took the floor. In his talk, he presented a timeline of JIVE and the EVN, as well as the most significant moments in VLBI history. He also highlighted key milestones for JIVE, such as its efficiency in managing European Commission projects and taking advantage of technical developments. Additionally, he recognised that future opportunities could be linked to doing VLBI involving the SKA. A major part of his presentation focused on providing former JIVE directors—Richard Schilizzi, Michael Garrett, and Francisco Colomer—the opportunity to share their insights and answer questions about key aspects of JIVE's history and achievements.
Ongoing Technical Progress
Marjolein Verkouter, Head of Technical Operations and R&D, then provided a glimpse into the diverse areas where JIVE supports Global VLBI. She guided us through key milestones in the technical evolution of the EVN, such as the transition between different types of correlators and the implementation of e-VLBI. This overview illustrated how JIVE and the EVN are set to deliver ultra-high spectral resolution and drive scientific breakthroughs now and in the future.
Support for EVN Users
The remaining time was shared by Bob Campbell, Head of the Science Operations Group, and Zsolt Paragi, Head of the User Support Group. They guided us through JIVE's 30 years of correlation, science, and support for EVN users. Campbell's talk highlighted the evolution of EVN correlation at JIVE, from the EVN MkIV Data Processor through the EVN Software Correlator at JIVE (SFXC), while also addressing the enhanced astronomical capabilities of SFXC from the users' perspective. Through well-designed plots, he illustrated the growth of EVN observing hours, data made available on the EVN Archive, and correlation throughput—while also touching on the presence of ever-shifting bottlenecks. Two flowcharts provided graphical summaries of JIVE's support process: one for events prior to observing/correlation and the other for events following correlation. He concluded with an overview of the history of support scientists at JIVE over the past 18 years—the individuals who have been key to driving the quality of support for EVN users.
Zsolt Paragi's storyline highlighted how Richard Schilizzi founded an institute dedicated to providing end-to-end support for users, from proposal ideas to data reduction. He gathered a talented team, all driven by scientific motivation, which led to significant advancements in VLBI, benefitting the broader community. One such advancement was the implementation of a software correlator at JIVE, originally developed to track the Huygens probe's descent to Titan with exceptional velocity resolution. This software ultimately evolved into the Super FX Correlator (SFXC). This innovation, along with e-VLBI developments and the EVN's shift in approach to transient science, enabled groundbreaking discoveries, such as identifying the first counterpart to a fast radio burst with unprecedented precision and imaging the afterglow of merging neutron stars—Paragi withheld from listing all achievements. Overall, JIVE's role has been vital in supporting the EVN and its users, training the next generation of VLBI astronomers, and shaping VLBI science over the past three decades.
In the days that followed the Symposium, two talks by Giuseppe Cimo', Head of the Space Science and Innovative Applications Group, along with presentations by JIVE support scientists Suma Murthy and Benito Marcote, provided further insight into the science and projects the JIVE team is involved in.
In closing, we echo the JIVE Director's wishes and words of gratitude: "Here's to the next 30 years of discovery and innovation! Wishing the EVN continued success, and a very happy birthday to JIVE. Thank you all for your ongoing commitment to JIVE, the EVN, and VLBI."