Alan Gabriel From Verrière to Orsay Director (from LPSP to IAS)

Before Allan… Mars 1984 Jean-Pierre Bibring and Richard Gispert invent IAS and came to me with the IAS concept: – a integration and calibration national facility using the LURE sources for UV and X rays moving the test tank which was at ONERA, Meudon – a new Institute integrated in the University with the technical teams serving new astronomy fields coming to space observations (inter-planetary and planetary science, long wavelengths from mid IR to submillimeter) – bringing two new teams from CSNSM (Jean-Pierre and Yves) and ENS Mars 20 84, Michel Petit director INAG-TOAE creates a commission explore this idea- L. Abouaf, H. Bernas, Durup, R. Gispert, J-L. Lemaire, P. Lena, R. Pellat, J-L. Puget (Pt) he also asks Alain Souflot to carry technical study the next INAG-INSU directorAndré Berroir also supported strongly the project CNRS, CNES, Paris XI discussions René Pellat Pt section 18, Hubert Coudane Pt Paris XI, Jacques-Louis Lions Pt CNES Hubert Curien Ministre de la recherche et de lES this leads to an inter-ministérielle in June 85 giving the green light for IAS

Allan comes in… Roger Bonnet leaves LPSP to become Scientific Director at ESA in 1983 Philippe Lemaire takes position as interim director October 1985 Allan is candidate to become director of LPSP and of the future IAS he is nominated in October and takes his function in January 86, Richard Gispert is deputy director at that time IAS is decided there are in LPSP: 18 scientists, 65 ITA, 1 PhD student LPSP

LPSP plans and construction detailed plans (CNRS architect) Allan, Richard and Philippe Salvetat do the design of the two buildings A small group is a prefiguration of IAS wity afew offices in the building 105 April 89 Allan create the Groupe Orsay to manage the construction – Allan Pt, Richard deputy, J.P. Bibring (solar system team), P. Lemaire, J.C. Vial (solar-stellar physics team), J.L. P. (galaxies physics) – S. Cazes, J. Charra, G. Guyot, P. Boutry) technical team) – Calibration facility P. Salvetat the construction of the first building starts

IAS is formally created Allan director of IAS 1 st term : spilt between Verrière and Orsay: 1 st January 1990, LPSP is dead, long life to IAS Allan is now director of IAS « LIAS a vocation à développer et/ou exploiter des expériences en astrophysique et plus particulièrement celles qui utilisent des porteurs spatiaux. Dans la mesure de ses moyens et quand les techniques quil possède leur seront adaptées, il pourra étendre ses activités à dautres parties des sciences de lUnivers. LIAS a aussi la vocation dassurer des tâches denseignement. LIAS gère une Station dEtalonnage, à vocation nationale, des expériences spatiales ». 30 scientists with the new teams` April 90 the calibration facility building is finished the Meudon Onera and Orsay team moves into the new building

IAS in Orsay the institute building is almost completedin April 1992 (plans were end of 1991, not so bad !) everybody moved in May 9 th 1992 the funding was not enough to cover the full buiding as designed (the 3 rd floor was not built) science was on going at increasing speed and number of people Allan started immediately requesting funds from the collectivité locales to built the 3 rd floor… and he got it !! ISO, SOHO,

use of the calibration and operation facilities and beyond… 3 major ESA observatories instruments were calibrated in Orsay ISOCAM is calibrated in Orsay but did not use the LURE beams (launched 1995) the first two cornerstones of Horizon 2000: SOHO will use intensively the UV URES beams (lanched Dec 1995) XMM later used the X ray beams especially to calibrate the spectral response (launched December 1999) OMEGA-MARS express (launched 2003) +several planetary experiments were also calibrated in Orsay during this period we also initiated Planck and COROT resônding to the CNES AO for small missions and the ESA AO for M3

Allans durector second term IAS grows… construction of the 3 rd floor of the institute fast increase of the number of scientists (CNRS and university professors), students, post docs teaching: DEA and DESS (astronomy et techniques spatiales