II Italian Workshop on Astrochemistry

Scientific Organizing Committee

Vincenzo Barone, Chair (Chair, Scuola Normale Superiore)Cristina Puzzarini (Co-chair, Università di Bologna)Claudio Codella (INAF – Osservatorio di Arcetri)

Local Organizing Committee

Alberto Baiardi (ETH Zurich)Serena Bolici (Segretario generale) (Coordinatore attività Comune di Follonica )Elisa Guidi (Eventi Culturali SNS) (Scuola Normale Superiore)Sergio Rampino (Scuola Normale Superiore)Monica Sanna, Scientific secretary (Scuola Normale Superiore)

INVITED SPEAKERS:

Spectroscopy

Luca Dore, University of Bologna
Ryan C. Fortenberry, Georgia Southern University
Silvia Spezzano, Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Garching
Nicola Tasinato, Scuola Normale Superiore

Public Outreach

Paola Caselli, Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, Garching

Observations

Josè Cernicharo, ICMM-CSIC, Madrid
Cècile Favre, INAF, Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Firenze
Linda Podio, INAF, Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Firenze

Reactivity

Daniela Ascenzi, University of Trento
Ernesto di Mauro, University of Rome “La Sapienza”
Jonathan C. Rawlings, University College London
Ian Sims, University of Rennes 1

As a continuation of the first Italian Workshop on Astrochemistry, held in March 2016 at Palazzo Strozzi (Firenze), the focus of this 2 nd edition is still the synergy between astronomers and chemists to comprehend the chemical complexity and evolution in our Galaxy. The unprecedented performances offered by new observational facilities, from cm-wavelengths to the THz window, are indeed revolutionizing the census of the chemical complexity in space. Specifically, interstellar Complex Organic Molecules (iCOMs) have been observed in all the evolutionary stages leading to the formation of stars (from cold starless cores to proto-stars and proto-planetary disks). Thanks to the great advances in the modeling of gas-phase and surface chemistry through laboratory works as well as quantum chemistry calculations, we now have new tools to investigate the formation routes of iCOMs in space, building blocks of pre-biotic molecules such as amino-acids and sugars.

The previous workshop has sown seeds that led to encouraging collaborations within the framework of two joint national projects on astrochemistry, namely “STARS in the CHAOS” and “GENESIS-SKA”. The main goal of the 2 nd Italian Workshop on Astrochemistry is to bring once again together astrophysicists and chemists working on observations, theoretical models, and laboratory experiments to present their recent advances, to discuss about the open questions, and to plan further future collaborations.

The workshop will be focused on the topics:

Observations of interstellar complex molecules
Kinetics and molecular spectroscopy
Computational and Laboratory Reactivity
Prebiotic Chemistry

Organized in Collaboration with the Municipality of Follonica (a maritime town in the province of Grosseto), the workshop will take place in the unique environment of a former Ilva Foundry in Follonica, recently restored and with spaces destined to the Scuola Normale Superiore. We plan to host about 50 scientists both astrophysicists and chemists.