The Virginia Initiative on Cosmic Origins (VICO) officially began operations on May 1st. VICO is an interdisciplinary research program focussed on the formation of stars, planets and life in the Universe and supported by $1 million from UVa’s Strategic Investment Fund. Led by Prof. Eric Herbst, VICO brings together faculty from the Depts. of Astronomy, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Sciences, and Materials Science & Engineering, as well as the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. VICO is also partnering with Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden and the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Garching, Germany. Several new Origins postdoctoral researchers have been recruited, who will join UVa in 2018. VICO is also supporting student research opportunities, including eight summer undergraduate fellowships, including placements at Chalmers University in Sweden. Look out for future announcements about VICO positions and events in the near future! (Image courtesy of Tyler Jones)
