AETC: a powerful web tool to simulate astronomical images

We present the capabilities of the Advanced Exposure Time Calculator (AETC), a tool, publicly available via web interface (http://aetc.oapd.inaf.it/), aimed to simulate astronomical images obtained with any (given) telescope and instrument combination. The tool includes the possibility of providing an accurate modelling of PSF variations in the FoV, a crucial issue for realistic simulations, which makes AETC particularly suitable for simulations of adaptive optics instruments. To exemplify the AETC capabilities we present a number of simulations for specific science cases, useful for studying the capabilities of next generation AO imaging cameras for Extremely Large Telescopes.