LOFAR ERIC

LOFAR ERIC coordinates the development and operation of LOFAR (Low Frequency Array), the world's largest and most sensitive telescope for low radio frequencies, between 10 and 240 MHz. The telescope consists of 52 antenna stations strategically placed across Europe, with center in the Netherlands. Stations are located in France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Poland, the United Kingdom, and, since 2011, in Sweden at Onsala Space Observatory.

The telescope has no moving parts and its pointing at the sky is enabled by powerful software. With intensive data processing both locally and centrally, LOFAR offers both high angular resolution, wide fields of view and the ability to observe in multiple directions simultaneously. LOFAR is an official pathfinder for SKA-Low, the SKA Observatory’s telescope in Australia.

LOFAR's scientific mission covers many areas from cosmology to studies of the solar system, and to lightning, the ionosphere and space weather. The telescope carries out deep surveys of the sky, studies transient radio sources och opening new avenues for the study of the interstellar medium and cosmic magnetic fields.

The telescope has been operated since 2023 by a consortium established among EU countries. Sweden has long been member of the LOFAR collaboration, becoming a member of the consortium in 2025.