Old News From 2010-2012 For The Royal Observatory

UK ATC24-armed giant led from the UK successfully installed on ESO's Very Large Telescope

12th Dec 2012

A two and a half ton instrument that can look back billions of years, simultaneously pinpointing 24 galaxies and uncovering intricate detail about each of them, has made its first observations in Chile. The K-band Multi Object Spectrometer (KMOS) has been successfully tested on the world’s most advanced optical telescope, the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT). KMOS is such a step forward in capability that it can achieve in just months what previous generations of instruments would have taken years to uncover. It will allow astronomers to discover the important processes at work during the formation of galaxies in the very early Universe billions of years ago. The achievement of ‘first light’ follows years of design and construction by teams in the UK, in Germany and at ESO. The KMOS team is led in the UK by Durham University and the instrument was assembled at STFC’s UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC).

Full text of the Press Release

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Astronomers Shed New Light On Cosmic Dawn

12th Dec 2012

University of Edinburgh astronomers have used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to reveal a population of primitive galaxies that formed more than 13 billion years ago, when the Universe was less than 4% of its present age. One of these is probably the most distant galaxy found to date (at redshift 12). These new observations shed new light on the earliest years of cosmic history.

Full text of the press release

IFA Logo"Cosmic GDP" crashes 97% as star formation slumps

7th November 2012

While parts of the world experience economic hardship, a team of astronomers co-led by Professsor Philip Best at the Institute for Astronomy in Edinburgh has found an even bigger slump happening on a cosmic scale.

Full text of the press release

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Euclid mission jumps final hurdle

22nd June 2012

The European Space Agency (ESA) has formally adopted the Euclid mission into their Cosmic Vision programme.

To make this adoption a success, the largest astronomical collaboration in history has been formed, and the University of Edinburgh plays leading roles in this endeavour. Adoption marks the final phase in a 6-year selection process and means that the scientists, industry partners and ESA can now start to aim for the expected launch date in 7 years' time.

Full text of the press release

UK ATCWorld's largest ground-based telescope is given 'go ahead'

11th June 2012

The governing Council of the European Southern Observatory (link opens in a new window) has today approved the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) programme – the world’s largest ground-based optical telescope.

Construction will not commence until provisional votes by four of the member states, including the UK, have been confirmed and 90% of the funding required has been secured. The E-ELT is a 39-m diameter optical/infrared telescope, planned to be tens of times more sensitive than any current telescope of its kind.

Full text of the Press Release

UK ATCFirst instrument for the JWST is completed and handed over to NASA

09 May 2012

After more than ten years of work by more than 200 engineers, the Mid InfraRed Instrument (MIRI), a camera so sensitive it could see a candle on one of Jupiter’s moons, has been declared ready for delivery by the European Space Agency and NASA. The MIRI Optical System is an instrument for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) that will eventually take up a position four times further away from the Earth than the Moon. It will now be shipped to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center where it will be integrated with the other three instruments and the telescope.

Full text of the Press Release

IFA LogoBlack hole caught red-handed in a stellar homicide

3rd May 2012

British Astronomers have helped to gather the most direct evidence yet of a supermassive black hole shredding a star that wandered too close.

Full text of the press release

ROEWish You Were Here? Searching for Exoplanets

12 April 2012

"Wish You Were Here? Searching for Exoplanets" is a Scottish Government Science Engagement grant funded project and collaboration between ROE, Edinburgh College of Art and the University of St Andrews.

For the project, two teams of current and former ECA students have been working with astronomers to produce two short documentary films relating to work on exoplanets in Scotland.

The films have been completed and will premiere at the Edinburgh International Science Festival on Sunday 15th April, 8pm, in the National Museum of Scotland Auditorium. The films will then go on tour across Scotland, from Hoy to Wigtown!

More details about the films and screening locations.

ROEMid-Kent Astronomical Society begins work with the telescope

2nd April 2012

Members of the Mid-Kent Astronomical Society made a visit to the Royal Observatory on Monday the 2nd of March 2012 to begin the operation to remove the delicate optics from the old 20" IfA telescope prior to moving the instrument to its new home in Kent.

More information about the Mid-Kent Astronomical Society visit

ROE'Can-do' Kids meet at Royal Observatory

27 March 2012

Seven teams of high school students from across Scotland will compete to launch a space experiment that fits into a soft drinks can (a ‘CanSat’) at the STFC Royal Observatory Edinburgh this week. The competition is part of a Europe-wide programme organised by the European Space Agency. The cans have been provided by Irn Bru, and the Scottish CanSats are now ready to launch.

Full text of the Press Release.

ROENew SCUBA-2 camera reveals wild youth of the universe

27th March 2012

A team of astronomers from the UK, Canada and the Netherlands have commenced a revolutionary new study of cosmic star-formation history, looking back in time to when the universe was still in its lively and somewhat unruly youth! The consortium, co-led by University of Edinburgh astrophysicist Professor James Dunlop, is using a brand new camera called SCUBA-2, the most powerful camera ever developed for observing light at "sub-mm" wavelengths (i.e. light of wavelength 1000 times longer than we can see with our eyes).

Full text of the Press Release.

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VISTA produces spectacular panoramic view of the distant Universe

21st March 2012

A team led by University of Edinburgh astrophysicist Professor James Dunlop has just released the most sensitive ever infrared image of a representative region of the distant Universe. The new image comes from the first year of data taken as part of the five-year UltraVISTA survey. It was made by combining more than six thousand separate exposures equivalant to an exposure time of 55 hours. The image reveals more than 200,000 galaxies, including the most massive galaxies yet seen in the early Universe, objects which formed less than one billion years after the Big Bang.

Full text of the press release

IFA LogoIfA astronomers share the RAS's Group Achievement Award

18th January 2012

The Group Achievement Award goes to members behind UKIDSS, the next generation near-infrared sky survey. Sharing in the award are IfA astronomers Prof Andy Lawrence and Dr Nigel Hambly.

The Group Achievement Award recognises outstanding achievement by large consortia in any branch of astronomy or geophysics where it is not appropriate to present, jointly, one of the other awards of the Society. The Award is made only occasionally, although nominations are sought annually.

UKIDSS - The UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey

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Dr Tom Kitching collects the RAS's Winton Capital Award for Astronomy

18th January 2012

Tom Kitching was given the Winton Capital Award for Astronomy, granted to a postdoctoral researcher who completed their PhD no more than 5 years previously and whose career has shown the most promising development.

Dr Kitching, who now holds a RAS postdoctoral fellowship, contributes at all levels to research into weak gravitational lensing, from the details of shape measurement of galaxies, through development of sophisticated analysis tools, to leadership roles in ESA's forthcoming Euclid space mission that will map dark matter and investigate dark energy.

As a student, he helped to develop the new field of 3D weak lensing and with its inventor, Professor Lance Miller, is the co-creator of an algorithm that measures the distortion of galaxy images. As a result of his particular expertise he was invited to join the leading ground-based lensing survey (CFHTLenS) and the leading space-based survey (COSMOS, using the Hubble Space Telescope).

Dr Thomas Kitching

IFA LogoAstronomers reach new frontiers of dark matter

9th January 2012

For the first time, astronomers have mapped dark matter on the largest scale ever observed. The results, presented by Dr Catherine Heymans of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and Associate Professor Ludovic Van Waerbeke of the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, are being presented today (09/01/12) to the American Astronomical Society meeting in Austin, Texas. Their findings reveal a Universe comprised of an intricate cosmic web of dark matter and galaxies spanning more than one billion light years.

Full text of the Press Release

UK ATCRevolutionary new camera reveals the dark side of the Universe

06 December 2011

A new camera that will revolutionise the field of submillimetre astronomy has been unveiled on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) in Hawaii. SCUBA-2 is far more sensitive and powerful than previous instruments and can map areas of the sky hundreds of times faster.

SCUBA-2 will provide unprecedented information on the early life of stars - normally obscured by the remains of the very dust and gas cloud that collapsed under its own gravity to form the star.

Full text of the Press Release

UK ATCThe future of UK Submillimetre Astronomy Workshop

12th-13th December 2011

This year has seen the start of operations with ALMA and SCUBA2 and many results from Herschel and Planck are emerging. A consultation on the future science with JCMT is currently underway.

With these events in mind a small workshop for UK astronomers has been organised to discuss the science drivers at submm wavelengths that will shape the UK science programme at these wavelengths over the coming decade. In particular, in the era of full ALMA operations we aim to discuss the scientific rationale for UK potential involvement in an extended or developed JCMT, involvement in CCAT and/or other future projects.

More information about the workshop can be found at: http://www.roe.ac.uk/workshop/submm/

UK ATCTheatre show explores Dark Skies

07 November 2011

Sound & Fury theatre company perform “Going Dark” at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, 11-12 November 2011. Written by Hattie Naylor, the show explores contemporary society's lost connection with the night sky and its wonder at the cosmos, as one astronomer slowly loses his sight. The show was part funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.

More Information from the Traverse Theatre

UK ATCSTFC funding paves the way for UK leadership in E-ELT instrumentation

03 October 2011

£3.5 million in funding from STFC over the next two years has put UK astronomers in a strong position to take a leading role in the development of key instruments on the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). The E-ELT is planned to be the largest optical and infrared telescope in the world and will be tens of times more sensitive than any current ground-based optical telescope. The project is currently awaiting final approval for construction to begin.

Full text of the Press Release.

ROEROE Workshop 2011 - Second Announcement
Following the Photons: Astronomical Simulations for Instruments & Telescopes

10-12 October 2011

The scientific questions posed by modern astronomy require facilities and surveys with greater complexity and data volumes than ever before. To ensure the maximum return from the investment in these facilities, simulations have become an integral part of their design and operation, and in the extraction of optimum scientific results from the observations.

This three-day workshop at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh will provide an informal and vibrant forum to discuss simulation efforts across a range of new and future facilities. The objective of the workshop is to highlight the essential role that such efforts now play in astronomy and to gather experiences from past and current efforts.

Registration is now open for the workshop at the Workshop Registration Page

General information about the workshop can be found at:

http://www.roe.ac.uk/roe/workshop/2011/

UK ATCCase study featuring UK ATC precision manufacturing capability

08 August 2011

Edgecam is a market leading computer aided manufacturing (CAM) system produced by Planit CAD/Cam software. They produced a case study featuring UK ATC projects and engineering capability that they published on their web site and issued to the trade press.

Link to the case study article.

ROEROE Workshop 2011 - First Announcement
Following the Photons: Astronomical Simulations for Instruments & Telescopes

10-12 October 2011

The scientific questions posed by modern astronomy require facilities and surveys with greater complexity and data volumes than ever before. To ensure the maximum return from the investment in these facilities, simulations have become an integral part of their design and operation, and in the extraction of optimum scientific results from the observations.

This three-day workshop at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh will provide an informal and vibrant forum to discuss simulation efforts across a range of new and future facilities. The objective of the workshop is to highlight the essential role that such efforts now play in astronomy and to gather experiences from past and current efforts.

Formal registration will open in August. To pre-register your interest in attending, please follow the link from:

http://www.roe.ac.uk/roe/workshop/2011/

IFA LogoIfA Postdoc awarded Royal Astronomical Society prize

7th July 2011

Dr Duncan Forgan of the University of Edinburgh’s Institute for Astronomy has been recognised with an award from the prestigious Royal Astronomical Society. Dr Forgan’s thesis, titled 'Probing Self-Gravitating Discs Using Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics with Radiative Transfer' is this year’s winner of the RAS Michael Penston prize. The prize is awarded for the best doctoral thesis in Astronomy or Astrophysics, and is open to all students registered at UK universities (excluding those focusing on planetary science, for which a separate prize is available). As well as a monetary prize, the award includes the opportunity to give a short presentation on their thesis to an Ordinary Meeting of the Society.

Full list of current and past winners.

More detail about the Michael Penston prize.

ROEUK astronomers find brightest quasar in the early universe

29 June 2011

An international team of astronomers announced today the discovery of the most distant known supermassive black hole, seen as a luminous quasar created by gas falling into the black hole.

Full text of the press release.

UK ATC'Extremely Large' opportunity for UK companies

20 May 2011

British companies are being urged to bid for a share of a billion Euros that are available in contracts on what will be the biggest optical and infrared telescope in the world - the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT).

Full text of the press release.

UK ATCHerschel maintains the family connection

16 May 2011

The Herschel Space Observatory has been observing the sky at infrared wavelengths since shortly after its launch two years ago, on 14th May 2009. But the name Herschel has a much longer legacy than that. The observatory is named after the astronomers William and Caroline Herschel, a brother-and-sister team who were two of Britain's leading astronomers in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Full text of the press release.

UK ATC ALMA Software Ready for Action

13 April 2011

ALMA is an array of millimetre wave telescopes being constructed in the Atacama desert of Chile by an international consortium including Europe, the USA and Japan. With 16 of its planned 50 antennas now available, ALMA is ready for early scientific exploitation and its first call for proposals was issued on March 30th 2011.

Full text of the press release.

ROEPublic screening of 'The Space Between'

24 March 2011

On Thursday 24th March, the Royal Observatory Edinburgh will be holding a public screening of The Space Between, the latest production by Lyre Productions, written and directed by Tim Barrow.

For full details and trailer see main page.

ROEScottish astronomers and engineers join search for new earth-like planets

12th February 2011

Astronomers from the Universities of St Andrews and Edinburgh are joining their counterparts from Queen's University Belfast and the Universities of Geneva, Harvard and INAF-TNG in the hunt for extra-solar planets similar to the Earth. Together they will be building and using a new instrument called HARPS-N for the Italian 3.5-metre Telescopio Nazionale Galileo in the Canary Islands. The instrument will be able to analyze the light of candidates identified from NASA’s Kepler space probe.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATCSpectacular New Images Taken With SPIRE

14 January 2011

Herschel images of the Andromeda galaxy taken with SPIRE feature in press releases issued today, 14th January 2011, by the Herschel Space Observatory and the UK Space Agency. SPIRE is one of three instruments used with the Herschel Space Observatory and was built by a consortium of 15 institutes in the UK, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden and the USA. The UK ATC built the SPIRE Beam Steering Mechanism, a moveable mirror inside the cold instrument that allows the instrument field of view to be moved on the sky in a controlled way. In addition they led the overall system engineering for SPIRE for the first four years, including designing the optical layout of the imager, and UK ATC staff participated in the development of the ICC.

The press releases can be found on the Herschel Space Observatory site and the UK Space Agency site.

UK ATC VISTA goes deep into the Blue Lagoon

5 January 2011

A new image of a star-forming region known as the Lagoon Nebula that lies about 4-5000 light years away has been captured by the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO’s) UK-designed and built VISTA telescope. The image demonstrates once again the capability of the world’s largest survey telescope of producing infrared images that are unparalleled in the detail they reveal about the history and development of our galaxy.

Full text of the press release.

UK ATC Herschel digs up the dirt on distant galaxies using cosmic zoom lenses

5 November 2010

A UK-led team using the world's largest space telescope, ESA's Herschel Space Observatory, has discovered a new way of locating a natural phenomenon that acts like a zoom lens, allowing astronomers to peer at galaxies in the distant and early Universe. The magnification created by this phenomenon allows astronomers to see galaxies otherwise hidden from us, providing key insights into how galaxies have changed over the history of the cosmos.

Professor Rob Ivison of the UK Astronomy Technology Centre, part of the team that created the images, said "This relatively simple technique promises to unlock the secrets of how galaxies like our Milky Way formed and evolved. Not only does the lensing allow us to find them very efficiently, but it helps us peer within them to figure out how the individual pieces of the jigsaw came together, back in the mists of time".

Full text of the press release can be found on the UK Space Agency website.

ROEConference highlights the benefits of astronomy research on wider society

13 October 2010

A technology developed to establish the age of galaxies which is now being used to compare medical scans and a telescope project that has seen UK companies win £9 million in contracts are being highlighted at a conference this week as examples of how astronomy can benefit society.

Full text of the press release.

ROEROE Workshop 2010 - Applications of Astronomy - Registration Now Open

13-15 October 2010

Astronomy has revolutionized our understanding of the Universe. The cutting-edge tools and techniques developed by astronomers to peer into the furthest reaches of the cosmos are now finding applications outside astronomy, ranging from devices for medical imaging through to sensors for security and defence. Astronomy technology is helping to address real-world problems here on earth.

This conference will give an overview of technologies and techniques developed in astronomy, highlight the solutions they offer for solving commercially relevant issues, and provide information and guidance on how academics and industry can collaborate to develop future applications.

ROEROE staff on-loan for 'reading' at Edinburgh's Fringe Festival

13 August 2010

A ‘Human Book’ about ‘Dark Skies and Big Telescopes’ was available for loan at Edinburgh’s Fringe Festival this week (Wednesday 11th August), in the form of Dan Hillier, the manager of the Royal Observatory of Edinburgh Visitor Centre. Dan from the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UKATC) was part of the ‘Future Editions’ library organised which offered 30 specialists on-loan across the city for festival-goers to chat with for ten minute spells.

Further details about this story.

UK ATC Spectacular new ‘Tarantula’ image captured by VISTA

11 August 2010
Astronomers have captured a spectacular new image in a region of our neighbouring galaxy known to have an abnormally high rate of star formation that reveals yet more details about its history and development. The picture, taken with the UK-designed and built VISTA telescope, is of the Tarantula Nebula, a region in the Large Magellanic Cloud which contains many stars that can be difficult to detect because they are enshrouded in the gas and dust clouds from which they formed. Astronomers were able to take the image by using ESO’s VISTA (Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy ) telescope because it can pick up near infra-red light, which we cannot see ourselves, that has a longer wavelength of visible light, enabling it to penetrate much of the dust that would normally obscure our view.

Full text of the Press Release.

IFA LogoBlackford Secures Investment

5th August 2010

A new software company founded by astronomy experts will embark on an ambitious programme of business development at home and in the USA after securing a six-figure investment sum.

Blackford Analysis opens for business today as Scotland’s newest University spin-out company after attracting development cash from a range of investors.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATCNASA award for telescope innovation to Edinburgh Scientist

15th July 2010

The late Dr Timothy Hawarden, who was based for many years at the ’STFC's UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC), has been awarded a NASA Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal for his pioneering work on innovative cooling techniques that make possible future infrared space telescopes, including the one that will follow the Hubble Space Telescope. The awards were presented at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, home of the Hubble, on 16 June 2010. Nobel laureate, Dr, John Mather, an American astronomer who was an early convert to Tim’s concept, accepted it on Tim’s behalf.

The medals accompanying the award were presented to Tim’s widow, Frances today (15 July 2010) at a brief ceremony held at the UK ATC (formerly the Royal Observatory Edinburgh or ROE) during a meeting of the Science Working Group for the James Webb Space Telescope. At the ceremony Robert Smith, an historian charged with writing a comprehensive history of this huge NASA/ESA mission, gave an introduction to the significance of Tim’s work to an audience of NASA and ESA scientists together with some of Tim’s colleagues at the UK ATC.

Full text of the Press Release.

ROEROE Workshop 2010 - Applications of Astronomy

13-15 October 2010

Astronomy has revolutionized our understanding of the Universe. The cutting-edge tools and techniques developed by astronomers to peer into the furthest reaches of the cosmos are now finding applications outside astronomy, ranging from devices for medical imaging through to sensors for security and defence. Astronomy technology is helping to address real-world problems here on earth.

This conference will give an overview of technologies and techniques developed in astronomy, highlight the solutions they offer for solving commercially relevant issues, and provide information and guidance on how academics and industry can collaborate to develop future applications.

Further details are available from the ROE Workshop 2010 web site.

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Duel International Conference "10 years of Cosmic Shear"

18th - 23rd July 2010

2010 marks the tenth anniversary of the detection of Cosmic Shear. To celebrate this, and to showcase the latest results from recent surveys as well as setting the agenda for Gravitational Lensing over the next 10 years, we are holding an international conference on Gravitational Lensing in Edinburgh.

The meeting is sponsored by the DUEL (Dark Universe with Extragalactic Lensing) European Community Research Training Network (a FP6 Marie Curie Action), and the University of Edinburgh.

Full details available on the Duel International Conference website

UK ATCAll eyes on giant telescope project

25 June 2010
An exhibition including two innovative videos is showcasing inspirational plans to build the largest optical telescope in the world – the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT).

The giant telescope is in an advanced stage of design by astronomers and industry across Europe, led by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The E-ELT, with a main mirror 42 metres in diameter, is expected to revolutionise our understanding of the Universe and its origins.

Full text of press release

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IfA Research Fellow shortlisted For Women In Science Award

23 June 2010
Dr Catherine Heymans, an Advanced Fellow of the Institute for Astronomy, has been named as one of the eight final candidates for the 2010 L’Oréal UNESCO ‘For Women In Science’ Fellowships. The winner will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Royal Institution in London on 30 June 2010. Four outstanding female scientists will be awarded fellowships of £15,000 each.

Full text of the web article.

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UK scientists focus on revealing hidden mysteries of the Universe

17 June 2010
Secrets of the Universe are to be revealed as a new telescope equipped with the world's most powerful digital camera begins its observations of the night sky. The Pan-STARRS sky survey telescope - known as PS1 - will enable scientists to better understand the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy, the material that is thought to account for much of the mass of the universe but has never been proven to exist. Astronomers from the Universities of Durham, Edinburgh and Queen's University Belfast together with researchers from around the world are using the telescope to scan the skies from dusk to dawn each night.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATC VISTA Views the Sculptor Galaxy

16 June 2010
A spectacular new image of the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253) has been taken with the ESO VISTA telescope at the Paranal Observatory in Chile as part of one of its first major observational campaigns. By observing in infrared light VISTA’s view is less affected by dust and reveals a myriad of cooler stars as well as a prominent bar of stars across the central region. The VISTA image provides much new information on the history and development of the galaxy.

Full text of the ESO Press Release.

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Largest radio telescope gets royal seal of approval

16 June 2010
The world's largest radio telescope has been officially launched at a special ceremony in The Netherlands attended by astronomers from the UK and many other countries. Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands formally opened LOFAR, which stands for Low Frequency Array, on Saturday 12 June. Representatives from consortia in France, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom then officially signed the memorandum that kicks off their scientific collaboration.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATC Herschel reveals bright galaxies like to stick together

26 May 2010
Astronomers using the European Space Agency's Herschel telescope have discovered that the brightest galaxies tend to be in the busiest parts of the Universe. This crucial piece of information will enable theorists to fix up their theories of galaxy formation.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATC Posthumous award from NASA

12 May 2010
The late Dr Timothy Hawarden, a long serving STFC staff member, has been awarded a NASA Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal for his pioneering work on passive/radiative cooling of infrared space telescopes. The awards were presented at NASA Headquarters yesterday (11 May 2010); Harley Thronson, who worked with Tim on these innovative mission concepts, received the award on Tim's behalf.

Every year the National Aeronautics and Space Administration awards a small number of medals to recognise those individuals and groups who have made important contributions to the agency's priority mission.

The Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal (ETAM) is awarded to individuals for technology contributions achieved in one of the following areas: early technology development significantly contributing to NASA's mission; exemplary collaborative effort in achieving significant technology transfer; or, exceptional utilisation of a NASA-developed technology resulting in a significant commercial application. These are the highest awards given by NASA.

Tim has been awarded a 2010 NASA Exceptional Technology Achievement Medal. The citation reads, "For the breakthrough concepts that made possible the James Webb Space Telescope and its successors." Tim was informed last autumn that he had been nominated for this award; it is very sad that he did not live long enough to collect it in person.

Harley will give the medal to Tim's wife, Frances, in the summer.

UK ATC Herschel reveals stellar surprises and galaxies galore

6 May 2010
The first scientific results from ESA's Herschel infrared space observatory are revealing previously unseen star formation. New images show thousands of distant galaxies furiously building stars, and beautiful star-forming clouds draped across the Milky Way. One picture even catches an ‘impossible’ star in the act of formation.

Presented on 6th May during a major scientific symposium held at the European Space Agency (ESA), the results challenge old ideas of star birth, and open new roads for future research.

Full text of the Press Release.

UK ATC E-ELT Site Chosen

26 April 2010
On 26 April 2010, the ESO Council selected Cerro Armazones as the baseline site for the planned 42-metre European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT). Cerro Armazones is a mountain at an altitude of 3060 metres in the central part of Chile’s Atacama Desert, some 130 kilometres south of the town of Antofagasta and about 20 kilometres from Cerro Paranal, home of ESO’s Very Large Telescope.

Full text of the ESO Press Release.

UK ATC Hubble's successor one step closer to completion

18 March 2010
A working replica of MIRI - the pioneering camera and spectrometer for the James Webb Space Telescope - has just been shipped (16 March) from the Science and Technology Facilities Council's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory to NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, bringing the Webb telescope one small step closer to embarking on its journey into space where it will produce the sharpest images yet of the farthest depths of the cosmos.

Full text of the Press Release

UK ATCRoyal Observatory Telescope acquired by the National Museum of Scotland

4 March 2010
A 1930 Schmidt Telescope was craned out of the West Tower Dome of the Royal Observatory Edinburgh this week, and will form the centrepiece of the new Earth and Space gallery at the Royal Museum on Chambers Street when it reopens in 2011 after extensive refurbishment. It was only possible to remove the telescope, which has not been used since the 1970s, due to the refurbishment to the copper of the domes which is currently under way. The telescope, which weighed more than 2.6 tonnes, could only be removed through the roof, so this was a unique opportunity for the National Museum to acquire this piece of Scottish astronomical heritage.

Images of the telescope being removed...

UK ATCNew Image Gallery available on ROE website

A new Image Gallery showcasing some of the best images from the Royal Observatory and collaborators has been launched on the ROE website. The collection brings together photographs of telescopes and observatories and instruments, astronomical images, artists' impressions and historical material from the UK Astronomy Technology Centre, the Institute for Astronomy and the ROE Visitor Centre.

UK ATCColin Cunningham honoured as Fellow of SPIE

11 February 2010
Colin Cunningham has been made a Fellow of the Society by SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics. Fellows are Members of distinction who have made significant scientific and technical contributions in the multidisciplinary fields of optics, photonics, and imaging. They are honoured for their technical achievement, for their service to the general optics community, and to SPIE in particular.

Full text of the SPIE press release.

UK ATC‘Out of this World’ Honour for Australian Astronomer

Professor Fred Watson, Astronomer-in-Charge of the Anglo-Australian Observatory, and one of Australia’s best-known science communicators, has been honoured for his services to astronomy. On Australia Day, January 26, Fred was appointed a Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia.

Fred has been Astronomer-in-Charge at the AAO since 1995, having previously worked at the Royal Greenwich Observatory and the Royal Observatory Edinburgh. Acknowledged in professional circles as one of the pioneers of fibre optics in astronomy, Fred is currently Project Manager for the international RAVE survey of a million stars. He holds adjunct professorships in the University of Southern Queensland, Queensland University of Technology and James Cook University.

Full text of the Anglo-Australian Observatory press release.

UK ATCOrion in a new light - ESO's VISTA telescope exposes high-speed antics of young stars

10 February 2010
The Orion Nebula reveals many of its hidden secrets in a dramatic image taken by the new UK-designed VISTA telescope. The survey telescope's huge field of view can show the full splendour of the whole nebula and VISTA's infrared vision also allows it to peer deeply into dusty regions that are normally hidden and expose the curious behaviour of the very active young stars buried there.

Full text of the press release.

UK ATCSad Announcement

It is with the greatest of sadness that we mourn the death of Timothy Garn, killed in a tragic accident whilst descending from Ben Lui on Sunday 17th January 2010.

Tim was a Postdoctoral Researcher in Extragalactic Astrophysics. Born on 7th September 1982, he joined the Institute for Astronomy in September 2008, following an outstanding performance as an undergraduate and postgraduate at the University of Cambridge. He was a very talented young astrophysicist whose research career was blossoming quickly, and whose future was extremely bright. An enthusiastic and very likeable young man, Tim lived life to the full and enriched the lives of those around him. He will be sorely missed, as a colleague and a friend. Our thoughts are with his family at this time.

Obituary for Dr Tim Garn