Swiss Innovation for Astrophysics and Planetary Science

January 20-22, 2026, Bern

Drawing on Switzerland’s excellence in astrophysics and in engineering, the conference bridges science needs and technology solutions to shape the future of astronomical instrumentation.

Go to the call for contribution / pre-registration form

The purpose of this conference is to: 

• Align the Swiss technical expertise with the scientific needs of upcoming national and international programs:
  • for ground and space telescopes and instrumentation
  • for in-situ experiments and instrumentation

• Bring together the Swiss engineering partners – including from Universities, Universities of Applied Science, national Research Centers, and Industry (large enterprises and SMEs) - engaged or interested to support technology development for Big Science. 

• Establish a national coordination platform to promote long-term planning and collaboration for the next-generation of instruments for ground and space missions.

This first event is promoted by the Technology and Innovation Platform of the NCCR PlanetS, as it marks a pivotal year for the Swiss exo-planetary science community: the conclusion of 12 years of outstanding activities of the NCCR and the creation of the Swiss Institute for Planetary Science.

While the starting point are the needs of exo-planetary research, the ambition is to broaden the scope and engage the entire astrophysics community and the engineering partners. This national event will strengthen the synergies between research and industry and advance the Swiss technical capabilities in ground and space telescope and instrumentation.

Program

The program is structured to match the "needs" of the research, i.e. challenges, future missions, with the “solutions”  that industry and engineering research groups can bring – and have successfully provided  in the past – in the development of scientific instrumentation or in providing cutting-edge technology for scientific applications.

The conference is organized around several thematic area (tentative distribution per day):

• THEMATIC AREA - TENTATIVE DAY 1:
  • Big data handling & automation, Data processing, ML/AI & data reduction, Embedded software, High Performance Computing (HPC)
• THEMATIC AREA - TENTATIVE DAY 2:
  • Opto-mechanical systems, High precision mechanisms, Vacuum / Cryogenics, High reliability electronics, Robotics and automation
• THEMATIC AREA - TENTATIVE DAY 3:
  • Photonics and Lasers, Sensing and Detectors

Scientific Organizing Committee