Oldest News From The Royal Observatory
Revolutions in Astronomy
Royal Observatory, Edinburgh Open Days
Free Admission, No Booking Necessary
As part of the 2006 Edinburgh Doors Open Day the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh will be opening its doors to the public on Saturday 30th of September and Sunday the 1st of October (10am - 5pm). Come and catch talks, demonstrations, exhibits and discover what has revolutionised our view of the Universe in the past 100 years.
For more information please see the press release.
ROE Annual International Workshop
9th to the 11th of October 2006, Royal Observatory Edinburgh
To celebrate the success of SCUBA, the imminent delivery of SCUBA-2 to the JCMT and the leadership that the UK has achieved in ground-based submillimetre continuum astronomy, a meeting will be held at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh on October 9–11 2006. The theme will be ‘The Submillimetre Revolution’ and the focus will be on the scientific output from SCUBA.
MBE for Girl Guide Role Model
Dr Gillian Wright, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh, and supporter of the Go For It! with sciZmic Space Events was awarded an MBE for Services to Science in the New Year's Honours. Gillian has taken time out from working on the next space telescope to take part in the events which are held at the ROE Visitor Centre in partnership with Girlguiding UK.
Full text of press release.
Cosmic Explorers: Mapping the Universe
Royal Observatory, Edinburgh Annual Public Lecture
Join us to explore the Universe using the very latest astronomical maps maps!
Speaker: Professor Andrew Lawrence
Venue: The Biosphere, Our Dynamic Earth, Holyrood Road, Edinburgh
Date and time: Wednesday 9 November 2005, 6.30 p.m.
Admission: Free
For more information please see the press release.
Further progress on the VISTA enclosure
Picture of the VISTA enclosure...
'Through the looking glass' - the Universe at your computer
Astronomers throughout the UK now have a valuable new research tool at their disposal which may lead to new discoveries and improved understanding of the physics of the Universe. Launched this week, AstroGrid provides a unique way of accessing, processing and storing astronomical data obtained from a diverse range of data archives held anywhere on Earth. AstroGrid will open the way for virtual observing on individual computers, enabling astronomers to compare and manipulate a wide range of astronomical data taken from both ground and space-based telescopes.
For more information please see the press release.
A historic setting for the future of astronomy
Royal Observatory, Edinburgh Open Days
As part of the 2005 Edinburgh Doors Open Day the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh will be opening its doors to the public on 24th and 25th September (10am - 5pm). Come and catch talks, demonstrations and exhibits and discover how our historic site on Blackford Hill is evolving to accommodate state-of-the-art technology and purpose built facilities for astronomy.
For more information please see the press release.
Dusty old star offers window to our future, astronomers report
Astronomers have glimpsed dusty debris around an essentially dead star where gravity and radiation should have long ago removed any sign of dust. The discovery might provide insights into our own Solar System's eventual demise several billion years from now.
For more information please see the press release.
Earth's final destiny
In the constellation of Pisces, some 100 million light-years from Earth, two galaxies are seen to collide - providing an eerie insight into the ultimate fate of our own planet when the Milky Way fatally merges with our neighbouring galaxy of Andromeda.
For more information please see the press release.
Dustiest Star could harbour a young Earth
Results published in Nature today (July 21st) from observations carried out from the Gemini and W.M. Keck Observatories in Hawaii have revealed details about a relatively young dusty star located about 300 light years away - helping to greatly improve our understanding of the formation of Earth-like planets.
For more information please see the press release.
ROE Annual International Workshop
Panoramic near-Infrared Astronomy
9th and 10th of November, Royal Observatory Edinburgh
A workshop on Panoramic near-Infrared Astronomy will be held at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh on the 9th and 10th of November 2005. The workshop forms part of an annual series jointly organised by the University of Edinburgh Institute for Astronomy and UK Astronomy Technology Centre.
More workshop details and information on how to register is available from the workshop page.
European Astronomers set sights on Earth-like planets and the first starlight
Astronomers from across Europe today (July 7th) took a step closer to making their plans for a giant telescope a reality when they unveiled the scientific case for an Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) - a monster telescope with a light capturing mirror of between 50 and 100 metres, dwarfing all previous optical telescope facilities. The announcement was made at a meeting in Dwingeloo, the Netherlands and initiates the design phase of the project. Astronomers plan to use the ELT to search for planets like the Earth in other star systems and to find out when the first stars in the Universe began to shine.
For more information please see the press release.
Deep Impact at the Royal Observatory
An audience of school children, their parents, teachers and observatory staff gathered in the Visitor Centre this morning to watch the Deep Impact impact live through NASA TV and to see images from the Faulkes Telescope in Hawaii.
The Comet Crash of 2005!
At O650 BST on Monday 4 July part of NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft will crash into Comet Tempel 1. Scientists hope it will make a crater in the comet somewhere between the size of a house and the size of a football field. This will let us find out exactly what is inside a comet. Astronomers around the world will be watching anxiously to see what they can learn from this giant experiment in space!
The Royal Observatory Edinburgh is holding two events to celebrate the mission...
For more information please see the press release.
1001 Hawaiian Nights dedicated to the cool and the far away!
British astronomers today (June 24th) saw the first images from an ambitious new programme of discovery, the UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS). The survey will scour the sky with the world's most powerful infrared survey camera (WFCAM) to find some of the dimmest and most distant objects in the Universe. UKIDSS will reach at least twenty times deeper than the largest current survey conducted at this wavelength.
For more information please see the press release.
Astronomy in the fast lane!
UK scientists have opened a new window on the Universe with the recent commissioning of ULTRACAM on the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile. This ultra fast camera is capable of capturing some of the most rapid astronomical events in the cosmos.
For more information please see the press release.
New astronomy facility comes on stream
The UK's foremost facility for the design and construction of astronomical instruments, the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC) located at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh, has today (17th May 2005) expanded and streamlined its facilities following the official opening by Jack McConnell, Scottish First Minister, of its new laboratories and associated offices.
For more information please see the press release.
Scottish Launch of the Faulkes Telescope Project
21 March 2005
The Faulkes Telescope Project aims to inspire pupils in science, technology and maths by giving them access to some of the most exciting and inspirational astronomical instruments available for use in the classroom. The Project was launched in Scotland today by the Royal Observatory Edinburgh and John Brown, the Astronomer Royal for Scotland, at the Royal Museum, National Museum of Scotland.
For more information please see the press release.
Further progress on the VISTA enclosure
Pictures of the construction of the VISTA enclosure...
Sun and Moon Day
Half Term Special Event: 15 February
On Tuesday February the 15 the Royal Observatory Edinburgh will be open for a Half Term Special Event. We have a wide range of activities to interest the whole family! On that day we will be able to observe the Sun and the Moon at the same time. We will use our solar telescopes to look at the Sun to see if there are any sun spots and we will use astronomical telescopes to look at the Moon.
For more information please see the press release.
World's Most Powerful Infrared Camera Opens Its Eyes on the Heavens
*Stunning image of Orion released*
A new astronomical camera has begun operations on the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) in Hawaii. The Wide Field Camera (WFCAM), built at the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC), Edinburgh, is the world's most powerful infrared survey camera. It will survey large regions of the sky at infrared wavelengths and is expected to discover both the nearest objects outside our Solar System and the farthest known objects in the Universe.
Polaroid Sunglasses let astronomers take a closer look at Black Holes
An international team led by an Edinburgh astronomer have discovered that by studying polarised light from black holes they can focus much more closely on what exactly is going on around them. The work is published this week in the monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society on November 11th.
Close Encounter with Solar System Elder
The asteroid Vesta will be at its closest to the Earth tomorrow (8 September 2004) for several years. This is a great opportunity to see it since the sky will be quite dark with a young moon.
Although Vesta makes its closest approach to Earth tomorrow, it will be easiest to see in the night sky on 17 September. Come to the Royal Observatory Visitor Centre to find out where to look for this minor planet. As the nights draw in over the next few weeks, activity at the Royal Observatory Visitor Centre really gets going.
Full text of press release.
Royal Society Summer Exhibiton
Hunting for Planets in Stardust
The UK ATC recently took part in the Royal Society's prostigious Summer Exhibition 2004. The exhibit described recent work on planetary systems around near-by stars.
ROE Annual International Workshop
Towards Large Submillimetre Dishes: Science Drivers and Technical Challenges
20-22 October 2004: Royal Observatory Edinburgh
The submillimetre passband has featured prominently in many of the most important astronomical advances of recent years, from the resolution of the far-infrared/submm background into obscured starbursts at high redshift to the mapping of dusty debris disks which are the precursors of planetary systems like our own. It is time now to consider the next generation of submillimetre facilities, and this year's ROE Autumn Workshop will bring together scientists and engineers to define their scientific and technical requirements and, in particular, to debate the case for a Large Submillimetre Dish (LSD). Further details of the 2004 Autumn Workshop can be found at http://www.roe.ac.uk/workshop/lsd/.
The 4 Terabyte SuperCOSMOS Science Archive is now available
The Wide Field Astronomy Unit at the Institute for Astronomy, University of Edinburgh would like to announce the release of the 4 Terabyte SuperCOSMOS Science Archive (SSA). The SSA contains over a billion multi-colour, multi-epoch source measurements based on SuperCOSMOS scans of the Schmidt sky survey plates in the southern hemisphere. The SSA includes the SDSS EDR and DR1 data releases, along with the all-sky USNO-B and 2MASS final data release, all prejoined to the SuperCOSMOS data. Flexible user interfaces have been set up to enable simple querying or complex data mining of object catalogue data. Comprehensive online documentation is also available, including a science archive cookbook containing worked examples of basic and advanced queries.
More information can be found at the SSA homepage.
Transit of Venus: Special events across Scotland to view this major planetary event
Scotland's astronomers are calling all teachers, pupils and the public to get ready for the Transit of Venus on 8 June 2004. The transit happens when the planet Venus passes directly between the Earth and the Sun, appearing as a dark spot on the Sun's disk. It happens every hundred years or so and for centuries astronomers have been measuring the transit to calculate the distance to the Sun. The last transit was in 1882 so no-one alive today has seen this event. The transit lasts 6 hours and can be safely observed with simple equipment. IT IS NOT SAFE TO LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN.
Astronomers and observatories throughout Scotland are running events in the build up to the event and on the day itself. Full text of press release.
Hubble's successor - UK takes lead role
The Hubble Space Telescope has brought the wonder and spectacle of the Universe into every home. Its successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) due to be launched in 2011, will have a 6.5 metre diameter mirror - 2.5 times larger than Hubble - enabling it to produce even sharper and more spectacular images from the farthest depths of the cosmos.
For the full story see the press release.
The Life Cycle of Astronomy - Building and using the best telescopes in the world
As part of the 2004 Edinburgh International Science Festival the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh will be opening its doors to the public on 3rd and 4th April (11am - 5pm). Activities, talks and demonstrations will be centred around the Life Cycle of Astronomy. You can find out how the Observatory is involved in every step of astronomy, from asking the big science questions, to designing new instruments, storing and analysing the masses of new data, to revealing new discoveries before finally, once again, asking the next big questions....
Full text of press release.
VISTA access roads and foundations completed
The road to the site of the VISTA telescope on Paranal has been completed, as have the foundations. Some pictures of the construction process can be seen here.
Visitor Centre Winter Talk
23rd: The Night Sky in Summer (Russell Eberst)
The brief nights of summer will bring some exciting events, with a total lunar eclipse, many meteors, and a chance to see noctilucent clouds. The outstanding sight will be an extremely rare transit of Venus on June 8th.
For more information look at the Visitor Centre Winter Talks Programme.
PPARC announces second phase of AstroGrid
The second phase of the PPARC e-Science programme, making use of targeted e-Science funds allocated during the 2002 Spending Review, has now been approved. It includes the second phase of the AstroGrid project
The full story can be found on the PPARC website.
Edinburgh instrument finds planet forming star
In a paper in this month's Science authors Paul Kalas, Michael C. Liu, and Brenda C. Matthews announce that they have found the nearest example of a young planet-forming star. This builds on results from the Edinburgh built SCUBA instrument on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. The SCUBA results are to be published in a future issue of Astrophysical Journal.
For the full story see the University of Hawaii press release.
SEES CPD project trains local trainers
Between 4th and 6th March, 25 teachers from throughout Scotland will be visiting the Observatory. The SEES Team will be training them how to run Earth and Space workshops for other teachers, as well as in generic training skills such as presentation.
More information about the CPD programme and details of how to book a place on one of our workshops are availablefrom the following link:
New look web site ready for launch!
Please browse the new web pages and let us know what you think: webmaster@roe.ac.uk or efg@roe.ac.uk
New evidence for Solar-like planetary system round nearby star - 01 December 2003
Astronomers at the UK Astronomy Technology Centre at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh have produced compelling new evidence that Vega, one of the brightest stars in the sky, has a planetary system around it which is more like our own Solar System than any other so far discovered.
More information available from the Press Release Page.