The nearby supernova factory

The Nearby Supernova Factory is an international project to discover and Study nearby thermonuclear (type Ia) supernovx. The unbiased search of targets in the 0.03 < z < 0.08 range is based upon the NEAT/QUEST programme, and follow-up observations are performed with the dedicated integral field spectrograph SNIFS. The goal is to acquire a large and homogeneous spectro-photometric dataset covering the extended optical range (320-1000 nm), and spanning the full life-time of the explosions. This will allow detailed studies of the local Hubble diagram, the SNe Ia physics, the SNe-host galaxy correlations, and will serve as an unprecedented nearby benchmark for the high-z cosmological studies to come. (c) 2006 Published by Elsevier B.V.