An up dated understanding, from a fundamental and deep point of view, of the progress  and current problems in the early universe, cosmic microwave background radiation, large scale structure, dark matter problem, and the interplay between them.

Emphasis is given to the mutual impact of fundamental physics and cosmology, both at theoretical and experimental-or observational-levels, within a deep and well defined programme, and a global unifying view, which provides in addition, a  careful inter-disciplinarity.

Special lectures are  devoted to neutrinos in astrophysics and high energy astrophysics.

In addition, each Course of this series introduces and promotes through special sessions, topics or subjects which, although not being of purely astrophysical or cosmological nature, are of relevant physical interest for astrophysics and cosmology. A special session is devoted to Fractals and Scaling Laws in astrophysics and cosmology,and Turbulence and their applications.

Deep understanding, clarification, synthesis, a careful interdisciplinarity within a fundamental physics approach, are goals of this series.

By the nature of the domain itself, there are different aspects, approachs and points of view (sometimes complementary to each other, sometimes in contradiction), to a same topic or subject. Special care is taken to provide the grounds of the different lines of research in competition (not only one approach). In this way, participants have an excellent opportunity to learn about the real state of the discipline, and to learn it in a critical way.

Lectures cover from a motivation and pedagogical introduction for students and participants not directly working in the field to the last developments and recent results. All Lectures are plenary, have the same duration and are followed by a discussion.

The discussion part of this series is as important as the lectures themselves. All Lectures  take place in the "P.A.M. Dirac" Lecture Hall of the San Domenico- P. M.S. Blackett -Institute.

The Course provides an occasion to review achievements, to confront theory and models with observations and among themselves, to exchange information on the latest developments and to discuss future prospects. The Course brings together experimentalists and theoreticians, -physicists, astrophysicists and astronomers- from a variety of backgrounds, young scientists at post-doctoral level, senior scientists and advanced graduate students as well.

"Current Topics in Astrofundamental Physics", 1st Course, Erice Lectures 1991, The Science and Culture Series,World Sc. Pub. Co., Singapore (1992).

"Current Topics in Astrofundamental Physics", 2nd Course, Erice Lectures 1992, The Science and Culture Series,World Sc. Pub. Co., Singapore (1993).

"String Gravity and Physics at the Planck Scale", Erice Lectures 1992 The Science and Culture Series, World Sc. Pub. Co., Singapore (1993).

"Advances in Astrofundamental Physics", Erice Lectures 1994, The Science and Culture Series, World Sc. Pub. Co., Singapore (1995).

"Current Topics in Astrofundamental Physics: The Early Universe", 3rd Course, NATO ASI Series  C volume  467, Kluwer Acad. Pub. (1995).

"String Gravity and Physics at the Planck Scale", 4th Course, Erice Lectures 1995, NATO ASI Series C volume 476, Kluwer Acad. Pub. (1996).

"Current Topics in Astrofundamental Physics", 5th Course, Erice Lectures 1996, The Science and Culture Series, World Sc. Pub. Co.,Singapore (1997).

"Current Topics in Astrofundamental Physics: Primordial Cosmology", 6th course, NATO ASI Series C volume 511, Kluwer Acad. Pub. (1998).  

Information about the Courses and Proceedings of the Chalonge School can be found on the WWW at the following address:

                      http://www.obspm.fr/chalonge

And at the WWW address of the Ettore Majorana Centre (Courses 96, 97, 99):

                       http://www.ccsem.infn.it

  He was a personality of his time,  one of the founders  of  the Institut  d' Astrophysique  de Paris. He  also  worked at the Observatoire de Paris, at the Observatoire d'Haute Provence, and  at the Jungfraujoch Scientific Station in  Switzerland,  where  particle  physics  experiments (such as the Manchester-Cern collaboration) were performed.

 A museum dedicated to Daniel Chalonge was inaugurated during the First Course of this School, in September 1-8 1991. The T Daniel Chalonge Museum, Erice, City of ScienceU, is located at the San Domenico Institute of the Ettore Majorana Centre. It exhibits a permanent collection of pictures, documents and   instruments   retracing   the  work  of  D. Chalonge and the institutions where he worked.

THE EARLY UNIVERSE

Elements of Baryogenesis. Neutrinos and the Baryon Asymmetry o W. BUCHMULLER, DESY, Hamburg, Germany

Fields out of Equilibrium in the Early Universe: Selfconsistent Inflationary Dynamics and Density Perturbations o H.J. DE VEGA, University of Paris VI, France

The Dynamics of the Gravitational Field: Normal Hyperbolic Equations and Characteristics The 3+1 Covariant Approach to CBR Anisotropies o G.F.R. ELLIS, University of Cape Town, South Africa

The Energy-Momentum Tensor of the Gravitational  Field. The Detectability of Relic Gravitational Waves o L.P. GRISHCHUK, University of Wales, Cardiff, UK

The Chaotical Dynamics of Cosmological Models o I. M. KHALATNIKOV, Landau Institute, Moscow, Russia

Inflation confronts Observations o E.W. KOLB, FNAL, Batavia, IL, USA

New Developments and the Problem of Inflation in String Cosmology. Conformal and Non-conformal String Backgrounds o N. SANCHEZ, Observatoire de Paris, France

Phase Transitions in the Early Universe o M.E. SHAPOSHNIKOV, University of Lausanne, Switzerland  

THE COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND

Observations and Theory of  the Cosmic Microwave Background, I and II o A. LASENBY, Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, UK

The Status of CMB Anisotropy Measurements. CMB Science and Cosmological Parameter Extraction. Future Anticipated CMB Anisotropy Observations o G. SMOOT, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA

Polarization of the Cosmic Microwave Background o I. D. NOVIKOV, Theoretical Astrophysical Center, Copenhagen, DK

The High  Redshift Radio Universe o Y. N. PARIJSKIJ, Special Astrophys. Observ., Karachai-Cherkess Rep.  

LARGE SCALE STRUCTURE, DARK MATTER

Baryonic Dark Matter o B. CARR, Queen Mary and Westfield College, London, UK

Clusters of Galaxies o G. CHINCARINI, Univ. of Milano & Observatory of Brera,  Italy

Structure Formation  Beyond Galaxy Clusters o FANG LI-ZHI, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA

Large Scale Structure and Galaxy Formation o C.S. FRENK, Durham University, UK

The Oldest Stars. The  Youngest Galaxies o P. W. HODGE, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

Survey of the Mass-Energy of the Universe o C. HOGAN, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

Deciphering the Nature of Dark Matter o B. SADOULET, Center for Particle Astrophysics, Berkeley, CA, USA

High Redshift Galaxy Groups and W0 o W.C. SASLAW, National Radio Astron.Obs.,Charlottesville, VA, USA

High Precision Cosmology. o A.S. SZALAY, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

On the  Nature of the Damped Lyman Alpha Systems o A.M. WOLFE, Center for Astrophysics and Space Sci., La Jolla, CA, USA  

FRACTALS AND SCALING LAWS IN ASTROPHYSICS AND COSMOLOGY

The Statistical Dynamics of the Self Gravitating Gas o H.J. DE VEGA, University of Paris VI, France

Fractals in Nature. Fractality, Lacunarity and the Near-Isotropic Distribution of  Galaxies o B.B. MANDELBROT, IBM, Yorktown Heights, NY, & Yale Univ., New Haven, CO, USA

Nature and Developments of Large Scale Structures o L. PIETRONERO, University of Rome I, Italy

The Field Theory Approach  to the Self Gravitating Gas. Interstellar Medium and Galaxy Distributions o N. SANCHEZ, Observatoire de Paris, France

The Cosmological Many-Body Problem and Galaxy Clustering o W.C. SASLAW, National Radio Astron. Obs., Charlottesville,VA,USA

Galaxy Distribution: Spatial and Luminosity Properties o F. SYLOS LABINI, University of Geneva, Switzerland

HIGH ENERGY  AND NEUTRINO ASTROPHYSICS

Origin and Physics of the Highest Energy Particles Observed in the Universe. Dark Matter as Determined from Energetic Particles o P. L. BIERMANN, Max-Planck-Institut, Bonn,Germany

The Mission SWIFT to detect Gamma-ray Bursts o G. CHINCARINI, Univ. of Milano & Observatory of Brera,  Italy

Neutrino  Oscillations and Neutrino Cosmology o A. DOLGOV, Theoretical Astrophysical Center, Copenhagen, DK

Astroparticle Physics with High Energy Neutrinos o F. HALZEN, University of Wiscosin, Madison, WI, USA

Current Status of High  Energy Particle Astrophysics Experiments in the USA: High Energy Cosmic Ray and Gamma Ray Experiments. High Energy Neutrino and Dark Matter Experiments o E.C. LOH, University of Utah & NSF,  USA

World Energy and Climate in the Next Century. Mass Extinctions of Species: What  killed the Dinosaurs? Asteroids or Volcanoes? o D.R.O. MORRISON, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland

Gamma-Ray  Bursts: The Most Powerful Objects in the Universe o L. PIRO, Istituto Astrofisica Spaziale,CNR, Rome, Italy

The Extreme Energy Cosmic Rays and Cosmic Neutrinos as a Probe for the Distant Universe. Astrophysics Involved and Experimental Approach o L. SCARSI, IFCAI- CNR, Palermo, Italy

X-Ray Observations of Isolated Neutron Stars o J. TRUEMPER, Max-Planck-Institut, Garching bei Mnchen, Germany

   Persons  wishing to attend the Course should apply in writing to:

                      o Professor N. SANCHEZ                         Observatoire de Paris DEMIRM                         Avenue de l'Observatoire                         F-75014 PARIS, France                         Tel: ++33.1. 40 51 22 21                         Fax:  ++33.1. 40 51 20 02                         http://www.obspm.fr/chalonge

They should specify:

i) date and place of birth, together with  present nationality;

ii) degree and other academic qualifications;

iii) list of publications;

iv) present position and place of work.

   Young persons with only a few years of experience should enclose a letter of recommendation from their research group leader or from another senior scientist active in the field.

    The total fee, which includes full board and lodging (arranged by the School), is US $ 1000.

            Closing date for application: August 15th, 1999

                  No special application form is required

        A letter will be sent to successful applicants by September, 30th 1999.   Participants experiencing difficulties with travel documentation and who need to know, before September 30th, whether or not their applications have been accepted may get an earlier special decision upon request.

  Admission to the Course will be decided on the basis of scientific excellency, in consultation with the Advisory Committee of the Course consisting of Professors G.F.R. Ellis, I. Novikov, N. Sanchez, G. Smoot and A. Zichichi.

                  Arrival day  is December 5th, 1999

                 Departure day is December 16th, 1999

Participants must arrive in Erice on  December 5th, 1999 (NO LATER than 5 p.m.).

   More detailed information will be sent to successful applicants together with the letter of acceptance.    

   According to legend, Erice, son of Venus and Neptune, founded a small town on top of a mountain (750 metres above sea level) more than three thousand years ago. The great historian Thucydides (~500 B.C.) said that the Elymi -founders of Erice-  were survivors of the destruction of Troy.  Ancient historians agreed that Erice was the oldest city in Europe.

  Homer (~1000 B.C.), Theocritus (~300 B.C.), Polybius (~200 B.C.), Virgil (~50 B.C.), Horace (~20 B.C.), and others, have celebrated this magnificent spot in Sicily in their poems. In Erice you can admire the Castle of Venus, the Cyclopean Walls (~800 B.C.) and the Gothic Cathedral (~1300 A.D.). Erice is at present a mixture of ancient and medieval architecture.

  Other masterpieces of ancient civilization are to be found in the neighbourhood : at Motya (Phoenician), Segesta (Elymian), and Selinunte (Greek). In the Aegadian Islands -theatre of the decisive naval battle of the first Punic War (264-241 B.C.)- suggestive neolithic and paleolithic vestiges are still visible: the grottoes of Favignana, the carvings and murals of Levanzo.

  Splendid beaches are at San Vito Lo Capo, Scopello, and Cornino, and a wild and rocky coast around Monte Cofano : all at less than one hourUs drive from Erice.      

     N. SANCHEZ                                              A.ZICHICHI

    DIRECTOR OF THE SCHOOL                   DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRE