The VST ATLAS Survey is a panoramic optical survey, which will complement the proposed VST and VISTA Hemisphere Surveys in the South. The initial aim of ATLAS is to survey 4500 deg2 of the Southern Sky at high galactic latitudes to comparable depths to the SDSS in the North. The VST ATLAS will be the first step towards a panoramic digital survey of the Southern Sky in the optical bands. Science drivers and uses are:

In addition, the VST ATLAS+AAOmega will feed VLT with rare galaxy and QSO targets for high resolution spectroscopy, constituting a new and uniquely powerful tool for survey cosmology.
For more information see the ATLAS home page.