HAYDN MISSION
High-precision AsteroseismologY in DeNse stellar fields
Project answering the ESA M8 call for proposals. It is designed to unlock the mysteries of Stellar Astrophysics, Cluster Formation and Evolution & The formation of the Milky Way and dwarf galaxies.
Join Us at the first haydn WORKSHOP
14-16 July 2025 in Bologna, Italy
Our science meeting is a unique opportunity to collaborate and contribute to the HAYDN Mission’s groundbreaking research. Secure your free spot in person or online.
The HAYDN project (High-precision Asteroseismology of Young and Dense eNvironments) is a space mission proposal designed to deliver unprecedented insights into stellar evolution and galactic formation by targeting high-precision photometry at crowded stellar fields—particularly open and globular clusters. Unlike previous missions such as Kepler, CoRoT, or TESS, which were not optimized for dense regions, HAYDN will focus on chemically and chronologically homogeneous environments. These stellar systems offer ideal conditions to isolate mass, age, and metallicity effects in population studies, enabling controlled empirical tests of stellar models.
The mission will monitor selected clusters spanning a wide range of stellar ages (10 Myr to 12 Gyr) and metallicities (from [Fe/H] ≈ +0.1 to −2.0), ensuring broad evolutionary coverage. Observing from the Sun–Earth L2 point, HAYDN will benefit from thermal and pointing stability, with uninterrupted data acquisition and a >93% duty cycle. Its primary instrument is a 1.36-meter Ritchey-Chrétien telescope equipped with a CMOS-based white-light photometer offering rapid cadence and low photometric noise.
HAYDN will produce a high-value legacy dataset that will refine internal stellar physics (including convection, angular momentum transport, and mass loss), calibrate stellar age and distance indicators, constrain binary evolution pathways (including gravitational wave progenitors), and examine the influence of stellar environments on planet formation. The mission complements Gaia, PLATO, and LISA, and will position Europe at the forefront of next-generation asteroseismology.
ious stellar masses, compositions, and evolutionary stages. This mission will deepen our understanding of stellar physics and evolution, enhance our ability to determine distances and ages of celestial objects, and serve as a critical reference for interpreting vast astronomical surveys like Gaia, Rubin/LSST, and JWST, ultimately contributing to a more comprehensive picture of the cosmos.
the Mission
HAYDN is a medium-class space mission proposal, which has already been confirmed as feasible within the M-class budget, providing a strong foundation for the next phase
Science
The core principle of HAYDN rests on the necessity for long-period, high-cadence, high-precision photometry in dense stellar fields, such as globular clusters, local dwarf galaxies and the Milky Way bulge
Events
1st HAYDN Workshop – Shaping the M8 Mission Proposal, a three-day event dedicated to refining our scientific objectives and engaging a broader community. July 14-16 2025, Bologna Italy. In-person or online congress. Free registration.
Join Us for the First Workshop of the Haydn Mission 2025 – July in Blogna, Italy
We are excited to announce the First Workshop, HAYDN Mission 2025, to be held 14–16 July 2025 in Bologna, Italy. This three-day event is a critical step in shaping the HAYDN proposal for ESA’s M8 mission call. The July HAYDN Mission workshop will bring together...