From 13 to 17 April 2026, the University of Groningen (The Netherlands) hosted the ExGal-Twin 2nd Radio Astronomy School and 2nd Project Meeting, key activities of the European project ExGal-Twin, coordinated by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC).

The event brought together researchers, students and technical staff from the IAC and the partner institutions: the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute (University of Groningen), the Institute for Computational Cosmology (Durham University), and the Observatoire Astronomique de Strasbourg (CNRS), reinforcing scientific collaboration and capacity building within the consortium.

Training in radio astronomy

The Radio Astronomy School (13–14 April) gathered 31 participants, mainly early-career researchers. The programme combined theoretical lectures and practical sessions, covering:

• Fundamentals of radio astronomy and interferometry 

• Calibration and imaging techniques 

• Data analysis tools and methodologies 

The school aimed to provide participants with essential skills to work with radio astronomical data, supporting their professional development in this rapidly evolving field.

Scientific coordination and project progress

The 2nd Project Meeting (15–17 April) brought together 36 participants from across the consortium. The meeting focussed on:

• Presenting scientific and technical progress 

• Strengthening collaboration among partners 

• Defining next steps and strategic priorities 

These discussions are essential to achieving the objectives of ExGal-Twin, which seeks to enhance the research capacity and international competitiveness of the IAC in the field of galaxy evolution.

Strengthening collaboration and capacity building

By combining training and coordination activities, the event represents an important milestone in the project, promoting knowledge exchange, networking and long-term collaboration among participating institutions.