Scientific quality of the proposal
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The scientific investigations undertaken by the consortium will provide
essential preparation for two Europe-wide observatories, which will
become operational within a few years. With the launch of the
Herschel observatory by the European Space Agency, ESA, in 2007, the
HIFI instrument will open up the complete submillimeter window to
high resolution spectroscopic observations unobscured by telluric
absorption. At the same time, the Atacama Large Millimeter Array –
a collaborative project lead on the European side by the European
Southern Observatory – will start initial scientific operation
with a partially completed array in the atmospheric submillimeter
windows. Construction on this array is scheduled to finish by 2011.
These two missions will provide a wealth of unique data on the
molecular universe.