I review the status of ground-based radial-velocity searches for extrasolar planets and speculate about the new results that can be expected in this field over the coming years. Then I review the plans for astrometric space missions and speculate about the impact that these missions will have on ground-based radial-velocity work, citing the specific examples of extra-solar planet research, the mass-luminosity relation for M dwarfs and metal-poor stars, and Galactic structure and evolution.

Radial velocity measurements are a well known high-precision method to obtain the orbits of extrasolar planets or brown dwarfs. However, this method is not able to determine the inclination which could be derived from astrometry. The astrometric effects of those objects are very minute, wherefore the interest of astronomers in astrometric techniques was very poor. This situation changes fundamentally since space astrometry observations are available. HIPPARCOS demonstrated the power of space astrometry and the extremely high accuracy of the DIVA, and especially the GAIA observations allows one to detect Jupiter- and Earth- like objects. The optimal estimation of the parameters of the orbit of extrasolar planets or brown dwarfs is a combination of radial velocity measurements and space astrometry observations. Here it is possible to overcome problems which are inherent in both observation methods, so space astrometry complements radial velocity observations and vice versa. This paper gives a method for the parameter estimation using both types of measurements.

We present results from the new Navy Prototype Optical Interferometer (NPOI) – the orbit of the double star Mizar A and measurements of Matar – which are compared to an orbit determined with the predecessor of NPOI, the Mark III Interferometer. Uncertainties of the orbital inclination are between 0.1 and 0.3 degrees; those of the semi-major axis are less than 0.5 percent. We determine the component masses and other parameters of the double star system, including relative photometry, directly through a fit to a combination of interferometric and spectroscopic data. Algorithms were developed to handle any hierarchical stellar system.

We describe plans for the study of spectroscopic double stars with NPOI, which draw from our experience with the Mark III binary program. This program yielded orbits of 26 stars, of which 17 were published with mass determinations of 24 components using spectroscopy. The accuracy of the physical parameters were often limited by the spectroscopy. We show that in order to benefit from the high precision of the interferometric observations, new high-precision spectroscopic observations, combined with improved algorithms for the detection of the secondaries, are required.

What an excellent colloquium! The measurement of precise radial velocities is now firmly established in the arsenal of observational astronomy and complements the spectacular improvements in astrometric precision from space and interferometry from the ground. Announcements of candidate planets have generated a huge amount of scientific and public interest and provided NASA with copious free publicity for its Origins program. The mapping of stellar surfaces and the probing of their interior structure from nonradial pulsations must be among the most exquisite measurements in science. We have celebrated all of these achievements here. It is quite ironic and a sad reflection on priorities that so many of the most exciting contributions were from authors without permanent positions.