What will be affected?
The main threat is to cut all astronomy grants by somewhere around 25%, directly affecting everyone whose research in funded, particularly young researchers. Many of the facilities used by UK astronomers are also under threat.
On 3rd March 2008, STFC released its Programmatic Review (PDF) which lists all STFC-funded projects in order of priority. The Programmatic Review states:
"It is important to emphasise that PPAN and PALS did not identify any poor quality projects in their rankings. All of the projects and facilities reviewed were doing, or would do, good science, and all were of sufficient quality to be funded".It is anticipated that STFC will only have enough funding to cover the High, Medium-High, and a significant part of the Medium-Lower categories. Projects listed as Lower or Medium-Lower priority are listed below:
STFC Programmatic Review 2007-8 page 1
Astrogrid
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: Astrogrid
Astrogrid is an open source project leading worldwide efforts in partnership with established astronomical archives and facilities to establish a Virtual Observatory and has designed much of the infrastructure to enable simultaneous access to most astronomical catalogues, images, spectra and other datasets in a standardised way from anywhere in the world, including where astronomers have no access of their own to most or all modern telescope facilities. The project will debut a first operational service at NAM08 but is under threat from STFC cuts.
BiSON
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: University of Birmingham
The Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network (BiSON) consists of a network of six remote solar observatories monitoring low-degree solar oscillation modes. It is operated by the High Resolution Optical Spectroscopy group of the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Birmingham, UK, in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University, UK.
CASU/WFAU
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: University of Cambridge
The Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit (CASU) is part of the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge University and is mainly involved in survey astronomy. Expertise within the group covers a broad range of ground-based and space-based projects ranging from data processing and image analysis techniques through to data curation and access to UK facility data archives. Modern era wide-field digital surveys produce vast amounts of data and CASU is at the forefront of automatically processing and archiving these legacy products.
Gemini
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: Gemini Observatory
The Gemini Observatory consists of two of the largest telescopes in the world, one in Hawaii and one in Chile. Gemini North is the largest telescope UK astronomers have access to in the northern hemisphere, and thus provides our best view of about half the sky.
EISCAT
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: The EISCAT Scientific Association
The EISCAT Scientific Association operates three incoherent scatter radar systems, at 931 MHz, 224 MHz and 500 MHz, in Northern Scandinavia. It studies the interaction between the Sun and the Earth as revealed by disturbances in the magnetosphere and the ionised parts of the atmosphere (these interactions also give rise to the spectacular aurora, or Northern Lights).
Hinode
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: JAXA
Hinode is the follow-up mission to the very successful Japan/UK/US Yohkoh mission. Using a combination of optical, EUV and X-ray instrumentation Hinode will study the interaction between the Sun's magnetic field and its corona to increase our understanding of the causes of solar variability. Hinode has launched successfully in September 2006.
MERLIN/e-MERLIN and JIVE
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics
MERLIN is the network of radio telescopes centered on the famous Lovell telescope at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire. By combining light from telescopes as far away as Cambridge, images with the resolution that would be obtained by an extremely large dish can be made. MERLIN is shortly to complete a full upgrade to fibre optic cables, enabling full use of each dish to be made.
UKIRT
STFC Priority: Lower
Image Credit: Paul Hirst, Joint Astronomy Centre
UKIRT, the United Kingdom InfraRed telescope, is Gemini North's neighbour on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i. Although one of the older telescopes on the mountain, the large cannon shaped thing in the picture is UKIRT's fantastic new camera, currently carrying out the most extensive survey of the infrared sky yet attempted.
H.E.S.S. & VERITAS
STFC Priority: Lower
View across the mirror of a HESS telescope. Image Credit: STFC
The High-Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) and VERITAS atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope arrays study high energy gamma-rays. The UK team are responsible for calibration and atmospheric corrections, and contribute to all aspects of data taking and analysis. Very high energy gamma-ray astronomy is one of the fastest growing windows on the non-thermal universe. This work also leads to involvement with future experiments such as the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA). Involvement of the UK is essential to ensure exploitation of the telescopes to which they have contributed a sophisticated trigger system.
ROE/UKATC
Image Credit: UKATC, The Royal Observatory Edinburgh
The UK Astronomy Technology Centre is the national centre for astronomical technology. The UKATC design and build instruments for many of the world's major telescopes and project-manage some UK and international collaborations.
Post Launch Mission Support
STFC Priority: Medium-Lower/Lower
Image Credit: ESA / CNES / ARIANESPACE-Service Optique CSG
The hard work doesn't stop with the launch of a mission, but it's then that the scientists are finally able to collect and make use of their data. STFC's plans call for a 30% cut in funding for science after launch which will affect missions as different as XMM Newton and Mars Express.
XMM Newton - X-ray Space Telescope
UK Dark Matter search at Boulby Mine
Image Credit: UK Dark Matter Collaboration
We know much of the Universe's mass is in the form of mysterious dark matter. Deep in Europe's largest salt mine, astronomers are searching for the faint signals caused by reactions of these dark matter particles with their detectors. If they succeed, this could be the UK's latest Nobel prize winning discovery.
Issac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING)
STFC Priority: Medium-Lower
Image Credit: Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING)
The Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING) consists of the 4.2-m William Herschel Telescope (WHT), the 2.5-m Isaac Newton Telescope (INT), and the 1.0-m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT), operating on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands, Spain.
UK Solar System Data Centre
STFC Priority: Medium-Lower
The UK Solar System Data Centre (UKSSDC) provides a STFC funded central archive and data centre facility for Solar System science in the UK. The facilities include the World Data Centre for Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Chilton and the Cluster Ground-Based Data Centre. The UKSSDC supports archives for the whole UK solar system community encompassing solar, inter-planetary, magnetospheric, ionospheric and geomagnetic data.
The facilities and projects mentioned on this page are listed as Lower or Medium-Lower Priority in the STFC Programmatic Review and as such are currently under threat. For up-to-the-minute information on the funding situation, please check out Paul Crowther's website.