CNTAC - DAS - Universidad de Chile

CNTAC is the interface between international telescopes and the Chilean astronomical community. The CNTAC also oversees the correct fulfillment of the agreements signed between the Universidad de Chile and international telescopes currently operating or planned to be operating in the country, and it is also responsible of the assignment of telescope time of these and other telescopes.

The Chair of the CNTAC is responsible of the correct operations of the CNTAC, and consults the Advisory Committee (AC) which is formed by representatives of the Chilean astronomical community.

The CNTAC issues a call for proposals twice a year with closing dates around April 15 and October 15 each year.

To this end, the Universidad de Chile twice a year organizes the Chilean Time allocation Committee (CNTAC). The CNTAC is formed by experts from the local community and from international observatories based in Chile.

The CNTAC peer review process is now completely operational with a revised web interface that will keep the review panel from knowing the identity of the proposing team. Proposal anonymization is henceforth MANDATORY.

Proposals that do not follow guidelines at https://das.uchile.cl/double-blind-review-guidelines/ might be rejected before evaluation of the panel.

Proposal Submission

Semester 2026B

Important Dates

March, 06, 2026: Release of Call for Proposals
April 10, 2026: Deadline for proposal submission (at noon).
TBD: CNTAC panel meetings.
TBD: Deadline for Fast Track proposal submission.

CNTAC Chair: Patricio Rojo (UCH)
CNTAC Coordinator: Andrea Mejías (CNTAC)
CNTAC Advsory Committee: Marcio Catelán (PUC), Julio Carballo (UTA), Evelyn Johnston (UDP), Claudio Cáceres (UNAB)
Galactic panel Chair: Maja Vuckovic (UV)
Extragalactic panel Chair: Regis Cartier (UA)

(TBD) Magellan Block Schedule 2026B

(Extracted from proposals.obs.carnegiescience.edu)

Chilean nights (TBD)

Current Semester

Telescopes

Las Campanas Observatory

Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory

ESO Observatories

Other telescopes

APEX
ASTE

FAQs

Where can I submit my proposals?

Proposals can be submitted to the CNTAC system at www.cntac.cl. This webpage accepts new proposals starting the following Monday after the release of the Call for Proposals.

If I'm a student, what do I need to apply?

Students included in the White List (https://sochias.cl/tiempo-de-observacion/lista-blanca/) may apply for telescope time. CNTAC encourages students to submit a support letter from their supervisor, although this letter is not mandatory for the proposal to be evaluated. However, if the requested data is crucial for the student’s thesis, it is required to include a brief explanation of the data’s relevance and the expected thesis defense date.

Do I need prior knowledge to operate the telescopes?

Some telescopes need prior training. We recommend referring to the Call for Proposals to learn about the specific requirements of each telescope.

If I have an unique science case that requires different instruments/telescopes, should I submit separate proposals?

No. CNTAC encourages not to duplicate science cases in more than one proposal. Instead, the PI can use several observing runs to separate targets and instruments.