The School will take place on San Servolo island, Venice, from April 4 to 9, 2027.
About the School
Nearly forty years after SN 1987A—the first astrophysical event observed in 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. Concurrently, 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 methods for monitoring and follow-up.
The primary objective of the program is to accelerate participants' academic and professional development by establishing 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.