DATE | EVENT |
---|---|
Feb 29, 2008 | Website Active |
Mar 14, 2008 | pre-registration available |
Mar 14, 2008 | First Announcement |
May 01, 2008 | Abstract submission Deadline |
June 3, 2008 | Final Program selected |
June 3, 2008 | Registration Open |
July 10?, 2008 TBC | Second Announcement |
July 15, 2008 | Registration Deadline |
July 21, 2008 | Marriott Courtyard North Hotel Room block released |
Sept 3, 2008 | Omni Hotel room block released |
The Workshop will be held at the
Omni Hotel on the
Historic
Downtown Mall in Charlottesville,
Virginia. For directions and maps, see below. The workshop will
take place Thursday through Saturday, Sept 25-27.
Charlottesville is a city of about 45,000 located
in the heart of Jefferson
Country, in Albemarle county
in the eastern half of the state of Virginia. It is 70 miles west of
the state capital in Richmond, 110 miles southwest of the nation's
capital in Washington D.C., 20 miles east of Staunton, and 70 miles
north of Lynchburg. Charlottesville is home to the sponsors of the
workshop: the North American
ALMA Science Center (NAASC), located within the
Headquarters of the
National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO); and the
Department of Astronomy
of the University of Virginia (UVa).
In late September, expect the weather to be warm
during the day, and comfortable at night (maybe a sweater).
However, check out wunderground
for a more complete forecast before your trip. Wednesday evening, Sept 24, the poster area at the Omni Hotel
(Conference Room 225) will be open
7:30-9:00 pm for setting up posters and picking up your registration
materials. The meeting starts Thursday morning, with a continental breakfast and
workshop registration 8:00-9:00am. The program begins at 9:00am and
runs until about 5pm. Thursday evening there will be a reception sponsored by Dr. Fred Lo,
Director of the NRAO, at the
NRAO
Technology Center (NRAO-NTC), located about 1.5 miles west of
UVa's Central Grounds. Tours will be available for the ALMA
Labs, including the North American Front End Integration Center. Bus
transport from the workshop to NRAO-NTC before the reception, and back to
the hotels after the reception will be provided. During on-line
registration, attendees must indicate whether they will take a tour, so
that we may properly organize them. NOTE:
Due to the limited time
available during the NTC reception, we cannot accomodate everyone on
the NTC tour (but we will do our best). In any event, those who
request a tour will be given priority by order of conference
registration. The workshop continues Friday, 9:00am-5:40pm. On Friday evening
from 5:45-7:00pm there will be a poster viewing session with wine and
cheese, followed by the conference dinner from 7:00-9:00pm, all at the
Omni Hotel. A bus will run from the Omni back to the Marriott
Courtyard North hotel after dinner. Saturday is the last day of the workshop, with the program running
9:00am-4:30pm (TBC).
We have some very limited funds available to waive registration and
possibly provide some lodging support for students at North American
institutions. To apply for these, please send alma08@nrao.edu an
explanation of why you and your advisor are having difficulty securing
the funds. You can fly directly to Charlottesville via
commercial air service into Charlottesville
Albemarle Airport (CHO, 434-973-8342), about 8 miles north of
town, with direct service from Atlanta GA, Charlotte NC, Cincinnati
OH, Detroit MI, New York LaGuardia NY, Philadelphia PA, and Washington
Dulles. CHO is served by Northwest, Delta, United Express and US
Airways Express. You can also fly into either Washington Dulles
International Airport (IAD, 703-572-2700, 2 hour drive), Ronald Reagan Washington
National Airport (DCA, 703-417-8000, 2.3 hour drive), or Richmond
International Airport (RIC, 804-226-3000, 1.3 hour drive). If you
do so, you should probably rent a car (all major brands are available)
and drive to Charlottesville (see maps and driving instructions
below). This is the U.S., so public transportation is
pathetic. Specifically, there is no bus or train service directly from
any of the above airports. Van service from the airport may be
arranged with Van on the Go
(Charlottesville: 434-979-5466; Nationwide: 800-459-5645. The hotels
with the room blocks are located in Zone-1), although
their prices are outrageous ($200-$300 USD one-way). If you are
having problems with your ground transportation, please contact us at
alma08@nrao.edu.
Workshop Schedule
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Student Support
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Travel Information
By Air
By Car
Because of the limited number of rooms that could be held at the Omni, a second block of rooms is being held at the Marriott Courtyard North (638 Hillsdale Drive, Charlottesville VA, +1-434-973-7100 or +1-888-236-2427). This hotel is located 4.5 miles north of the workshop location at the Omni Hotel. A bus will run from the Marriott Courtyard North to the Omni each morning before the meeting, and back after the day's activities. The group rate for this hotel is $104 plus tax (~$115 per night total). Rooms must be reserved by July 21 to get the conference rate. There are restaurants near the hotel, but food will be provided at a reception Sept 25, and at the conference dinner Sept 26. Driving directions from the Marriott Courtyard North to the Omni Hotel
For either hotel, attendees will have to reserve their own room. Make sure to specify the "NRAO ROOM BLOCK" or "NRAO/ALMA WORKSHOP".
If you experience difficulties booking the hotel please email alma08@nrao.edu
We will maintain a list of people who are interested in sharing a room with other meeting participants. Please send an email to alma08@nrao.edu if you wish to be added to this list.
There are good restaurants within walking distance or a short ride from the hotels.
You can find on-line information about Charlottesville, and things to do in Charlottesville, at the following websites:
There will be two computers set-up for putting talks on. One will be a Mac and the other a PC running Windows. The software available on each is as follows:
Please email us at alma08@nrao.edu if you require software not included in the above list.
All speakers should transfer their talks to a memory stick and bring the memory stick to NRAO support staff BEFORE the start of their session, preferably during the poster set-up session on Wednesday September 24 from 7:30-9:00 pm.
Back to TopPosters should be no larger than 35 inches wide x 42 inches tall (89 cm x 107 cm). They will be set-up near the Omni Ballroom, in Conference Room 225 on the first floor. Participants can set up their posters either Wednesday evening, September 24 from 7:30-9:00 pm, or Thursday morning, September 25 from 8:00-9:00am. Numbers will be assigned for each poster presentation, and participants will recieve a map of poster locations with their registration package.
Back to TopA wireless connection will be available in the hotel first floor, outside of the Ballroom and poster room. Connection information will be given in the registration package.
Back to TopA Continental Breakfast and plated lunch will be provided each day at the Omni. Coffee and snacks will be available during breaks. If you have a guest that you would like to join you for these meals, you can select the "Guest Meal Package" when you register ($120).
Hor d'oeuvres and drinks will be provided at the Director's Reception on Thursday evening.
The Conference Dinner will be held Friday evening in the Atrium of the Omni hotel. If you have a guest that you would like to join you for the dinner, please indicate this when you register ($50).
Vegetarian options will be available at most meals. Please indicate if you wish vegetarian meals when you register.