The School will take place on San Servolo island, Venice, from April 4 to 9, 2027.
About the School
Forty years after SN 1987A—the first astrophysical event observed with both electromagnetic radiation and neutrinos—and ten years after GW170817, which ushered in the era of multi-messenger astronomy with gravitational wave (GW) sources, the study of the transient Universe is entering a new frontier.
Today’s GW astronomy relies on LIGO, Virgo, and KAGRA, while neutrino astronomy is driven by facilities like Super-Kamiokande, IceCube, and KM3NeT. In the coming years, next-generation facilities such as the Einstein Telescope, LISA, and LGWA will revolutionize GW astronomy, complemented by Hyper-Kamiokande and upgrades to existing neutrino detectors. At the same time, major electromagnetic observatories — including the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, SKAO, and CTAO — will dramatically expand our capacity to discover and follow up on transient sources. This evolving landscape offers early-career researchers a unique opportunity to probe the high-energy, rapidly changing Universe through a multi-messenger, multi-wavelength approach.
Program Overview
The curriculum is organized into two complementary focus areas:
Multi-Messenger Astrophysics: Covers the physics of GWs across a wide frequency spectrum and astrophysical neutrinos across a broad energy range—from MeV energies (critical for early-phase core-collapse supernovae) to the TeV–PeV regime characteristic of high-energy sources. Key detection principles and instrumentation will also be addressed.
Transient Astronomy: Focuses on electromagnetic counterparts to GW and neutrino events, including Novae, Supernovae, Kilonovae, GRBs, and AGNs. Lectures will cover observing strategies, modern survey facilities, and advanced monitoring and follow-up methods.
The primary objective of the program is to accelerate participants' academic and professional development by building a strong, shared foundation in theoretical and observational frontiers.
Target Audience & Application Details
The Lucchin schools are primarily designed for PhD students enrolled in Physics and Astronomy programs in Italy. International PhD students and interested early-career postdocs/researchers are also welcome to apply.
Note: Because capacity is limited, foreign applicants and non-PhD researchers are welcome to register, but their admission must be confirmed by the organizers.