First Announcement & Call for Splinter Sessions

The 7th Workshop on Extremely Precise Radial Velocities

Campus MIL, Montréal, Canada • 13‑18 June 2027
Conference theme: Challenges in Extremely Precise RVs
Propose a Splinter Session Key Dates
Conference theme

Challenges in Extremely Precise RVs

EPRV7 is built around one central idea: detecting true Earth analogues requires extreme precision and accuracy, which can only be achieved by joining forces between experts in instrument building, data extraction, RV computation and stellar signal mitigation. We are therefore asking every participant, speaker, and splinter organizer to help us look at what is challenging, what is unresolved, and what is still standing between us and that goal.

Talks and splinters that encourage constructive discussions around open problems, comparison of differing methods and approaches, and novel or unorthodox solutions to outstanding puzzles are strongly encouraged.

Topics

  • New instrumentation: design, calibration, and stability
  • Data reduction, pipelines, and post-processing
  • Stellar and solar variability, mitigation methods
  • Statistical modelling and machine learning for RV
  • Time-series spectroscopy and telluric correction
  • Recent science results from high-resolution spectroscopy

Hosts & Leads

Hosted by Université de Montréal (Campus MIL) in partnership with the Planétarium de Montréal.

Lead scientists: Étienne Artigau & Nathalie Ouellette (IREx, Département de physique, Université de Montréal).

13‑18 June 2027: welcome reception on Sunday, conference Monday to Thursday, campus rooms available on Friday for team meetings.

Save the date

Conference Week

  • Sunday 13 June 2027Welcome reception at the Montréal Planetarium
  • Monday 14 June 2027Morning plenary, afternoon splinter sessions
  • Tuesday 15 June 2027Morning plenary, afternoon splinter sessions
  • Wednesday 16 June 2027Morning plenary, free afternoon, conference dinner in the evening
  • Thursday 17 June 2027Morning plenary, afternoon splinter sessions
  • Friday 18 June 2027Campus rooms available on request for team and instrument working meetings

Deadlines

  • 1 September 2026Call for splinter session proposals opens
  • 16 November 2026Deadline for splinter session proposals
  • 1 December 2026Call for abstracts opens, splinter themes announced
  • 1 February 2027Deadline for abstract submission
  • 22 February 2027Decisions sent for selected abstracts, early registration opens
  • 5 April 2027Early registration closes
  • 3 May 2027Late registration closes

Registration is capped at 200 participants and may close earlier than these dates if capacity is reached.

Format

How the Week Works

Mornings from Monday to Thursday are devoted to plenary sessions. Afternoons feature two or three parallel splinter sessions, except Wednesday, which is left free ahead of the conference dinner. Teams wishing to hold additional working meetings can request a room on campus for Friday 18 June.

This meeting is designed for discussion of ongoing challenges in the field. We encourage speakers to highlight the limitations they encounter in their work and to foster constructive discussion that moves the community forward.

Further details on invited speakers and the abstract submission process will follow in a subsequent announcement.

Now open

Call for Splinter Sessions

We invite proposals for splinter sessions built around the conference theme, "Challenges in Extremely Precise RVs". Each proposal should include a short paragraph explaining how the session addresses a specific challenge, open problem, or unresolved tension in the field, rather than serving primarily as a venue for results presentations.

We welcome proposals that depart from the classic sequence of short talks, for example hands-on demos, data analysis get-togethers, tutorial or workshop-style sessions, community white-paper drafting, or structured debates. Sessions may span multiple days, for instance a data analysis get-together or a paper-drafting exercise that involves "homework" by participants.

There will be two blocks of 90 minutes for splinter sessions each afternoon, separated by a coffee break, with 2 to 3 sessions running in parallel. Splinter sessions run on three of the four conference days (Wednesday afternoon is left free), for a total of 12 to 18 splinter blocks.

Submit a splinter proposal Deadline: 16 November 2026

What a proposal should include

  • Session title
  • Organizer(s) and affiliation(s)
  • A short abstract of a few sentences, describing the session's goals
  • An explicit statement of how the session engages with the "Challenges in Extremely Precise RVs" theme
  • The total number of blocks required (each block is 90 minutes, up to 3 blocks per theme)
  • The intended format: short talks, discussion, hands-on or tutorial, working session, and so on
  • Any prior work required of participants, for example installing software, downloading datasets, or other homework
  • A proposed slate of organizers and participants who commit to attend and participate. Proposers may also solicit abstracts as part of the main abstract submission process.

Accessibility

  • Campus and metro station have elevators.
  • EPRV7 is an in-person conference. Limited web-casting may be provided on a best-effort basis.
  • Presentations are expected to be given in person.

Travel & Lodging

  • International arrivals via YUL; express 747 bus and taxis to downtown.
  • Easy STM metro access (Outremont station, Blue Line, elevator-equipped).
  • Affordable university residences one metro stop away. Hotel options via metro across the city.
  • Group-rate week-long transit passes planned. City-wide bike-share (BIXI) nearby.
  • Letters for visa support available on request.
Getting Here

Logistics

  • Arrivals via YUL Montréal-Trudeau. Express 747 bus to downtown, taxis available.
  • STM metro: Outremont station (Blue Line) with elevators; 1 stop from dorms, about 30-40 min from downtown hotels.
  • Bike share (BIXI) and dedicated bike paths near Campus MIL and across the city.

Lodging

  • University residences one metro stop away (block booking planned).
  • Hotel options across the city via metro. Recommendations coming soon.
  • UdeM Residences (Édouard-Montpetit) for budget stays, ahort Blue line hop to Campus MIL.

On-site

  • Campus-wide eduroam and fast Wi‑Fi.
  • Limited web-casting may be provided on a best-effort basis.
Sunday 13 June

Planetarium Reception

Opening evening at the Planétarium de Montréal with a cocktail-style reception and planetarium dome shows. Easy metro ride from Campus MIL via the Green Line.

Free Afternoon (Wednesday)

Explore Montréal's "Espace pour la vie": Botanical Garden, Biodome, Insectarium, Planetarium, or join guided bike and eco tours. Many other museums and festivals are nearby for self-guided visits. The conference dinner follows in the evening.

Community Friday

Friday 18 June is reserved for team, instrument, and consortium working meetings; rooms of various sizes are available on request.

Participate

Registration & Capacity

EPRV7 will be an in-person conference. limited web-casting may be provided on a best-effort basis. In keeping with the workshop spirit of the conference, registration will be capped at 200 participants.

We encourage registering early: registration may close ahead of the published dates if capacity is reached beforehand! Fee details will be circulated alongside the registration form.

Early registration opens 22 February 2027 and closes 5 April 2027. Late registration closes 3 May 2027.

Email for updates

People

Science Organizing Committee

  • Étienne ArtigauUniversité de Montréal, chair
  • Susana BarrosInstituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço, Porto
  • Megan BedellFlatiron Institute
  • Jennifer BurtNASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
  • Heather CeglaUniversity of Warwick
  • Xavier DumusqueUniversité de Genève
  • João FariaUniversité de Genève
  • Nathalie OuelletteUniversité de Montréal
  • Nuno SantosInstituto de Astrofísica e Ciências do Espaço, Porto
  • Chris SchwabMacquarie University
  • Alejandro Suárez MascareñoInstituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
  • Sharon WangTsinghua University
  • Jason WrightPenn State University

Local Organizing Committee

Hosted by IREx and the Département de physique of the Université de Montréal, with the Planétarium de Montréal.

  • Étienne Artigau
  • Frédérique Baron
  • Flavie Bélanger
  • Casey Brinkman
  • Neil Cook
  • Rafael Daigneault
  • Dhvani Doshi
  • René Doyon
  • Amélie Gressier
  • Olivier Hernandez
  • David Lafrenière
  • Pierrot Lamontagne
  • Alexandrine L’Heureux
  • Lison Malo
  • Leslie Moranta
  • Nathalie Ouellette
  • Riley Rosener
  • Sabina Sagybayeva
  • Avidaan Srivastava
  • Heidi White