IRAM was honored to welcome Rafael Guerra Posadas, Undersecretary of State at the Spanish Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, to its facilities in Grenoble and on the Plateau de Bure. He was accompanied by Lorenzo García Asensio, Director of the Spanish National Geographic Institute (IGN) and José Antonio López Fernández, Director of the Astronomy division at IGN and legal representative of IRAM’s General Assembly.

This official visit provided an opportunity to discuss IRAM’s ongoing and future projects, in particular the renovation and extension of IRAM’s headquarters in Grenoble, scheduled to begin in 2026.

The delegation met with IRAM’s management, as well as several technical and scientific teams, to exchange on research activities, instrumental developments, and perspectives for future cooperation.

The visit continued at the site of NOEMA (Northern Extended Millimeter Array), IRAM’s millimeter interferometer located in the French Alps. The guests were able to discover the twelve 15-meter antennas that make up the array, one of the world’s most powerful instruments for exploring the cold Universe.

This visit highlights the strong cooperation between France, Germany, and Spain within the IRAM consortium, and underlines the key role of the IGN in its continued support of the institute’s research infrastructures.