| The Faulkes Telescope Project |
| One of the most exciting developments ever for astronomy in schools |
What is the largest telescope that a school or an amateur society can aspire to? 300mm? 400mm? Half a metre? Some of the luckier ones might gain occasional access to something larger, but a project being funded by the Faulkes Corporation aims to make a 2-metre telescope available for schools, museums and undergraduates. Not only that, the telescope will be on a first-class site on the other side of the world, making it possible to schedule observing sessions during normal school hours.
Computer simulation of the Faulkes Telescope |
The telescope is one of the New Generation of Astronomical Telescopes (NGAT) designed by the Royal Greenwich Observatory prior to its closure. The design has been taken up by Telescope Technologies Limited (TTL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of John Moores University (JMU) in Liverpool. TTL is building three 2-metre telescopes, all to the same basic design but with slight differences.
The first is destined for La Palma in the Canary Islands and will be operated remotely by JMU. Its job is to act as the technology demonstrator for the family of NGATs based on the same design, and to provide JMU with a first-class research tool, enabling it to consolidate its position as one of the leading universities in astrophysics research in the UK.
The second telescope is being built for the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) at Pune in India. This will be used by researchers from several universities throughout the sub-continent.
Location of the Faulkes Telescope (ringed) on Haleakala |
The third telescope is the Faulkes Telescope which is destined for Maui in the Hawaiian Islands. It will be sited on Haleakala adjacent to telescopes operated by the US Air Force and the University of Hawaii. Schools in Hawaii are gearing up already to use their share of telescope time which will be provided in exchange for the site and local support for telescope operations.
The main focus for operations in the UK was to be at the Royal Observatory Greenwich but has now been established at the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University. However, schools can also expect to access the telescope and its data over the Internet. Plans for getting the best from the telescope and making it readily available to schools are being developed at present.
Computer simulation of the Faulkes Telescope in operation, showing the Cassegrain instrument station fitted with CCD camera |
The Faulkes Telescope will be equipped with a state-of-the-art CCD camera identical to the ones used by front-line research workers. This will offer schools the unprecedented opportunity to carry out ground-breaking research of their own, as well as use the telescope as a valuable teaching resource. One of the hoped-for side effects is that schools will team up with astronomers to bring the excitement of research astronomy into the classroom. The telescope will also be able to follow up discoveries made on other telescopes including those in space.
The project is being funded by the Faulkes Foundation, a charitable organisation set up by Martin (Dill) Faulkes. Dill has a Phd in Cosmology which he gained at Queen Elizabeth College, London before embarking on a career in computing. His aim is to encourage a new generation of young people to take an interest in science and technology.
Engineers inspect one of the first 2-metre primary mirrors to be delivered to TTL's Merseyside factory |
The project is making good progress and the first review of the telescope itself took place at JMU's Astrophysics Research Institute on September 14th 1999. The design of the telescope was presented to the review panel chaired by Dr Paul Murdin and consisting of Dill Faulkes, Richard Cole (Project Manager), Robin Catchpole, Derek Ives, and myself. Before the review I visited TTL's factory to see the work in progress. The factory is very impressive, having been purpose-built for telescope assembly and testing. Several major components for the three telescopes were in evidence, including two finished primary mirrors, three centre sections and three primary mirror cells complete with mirror support systems. One of these was on the telescope simulator undergoing tests.
It was very encouraging to see the way that this project is developing and to contemplate the impact it will have on young people. It has the potential to change the way in which astronomy, science and technology are presented, and to instil an enthusiasm for these subjects, not only in the minds of future scientists and engineers, but all future citizens whatever careers they choose.
Having been involved right from the beginning in founding TTL and establishing the NGAT programme it was also a pleasure to see how well these are going. The transfer of technology and staff from the RGO telescope programme to TTL has gone well and these form the heart of a new team being built up on Merseyside. Located in the Twelve Quays Technology Park close to JMU's Astrophysics Research Institute they are ideally positioned to take advantage of a stimulating and vigorous research climate. This will ensure that the telescopes they produce are finely tuned to the needs of modern astronomers.
Computer simulation of the Faulkes Telescope in operation, showing the enclosure fully opened |
One of the aims of the NGAT programme was to take the technology developed for large research telescopes and to create a new family of telescopes with outstanding performance at prices considerably lower than previously obtainable. It was believed that this would enable individual research institutions, colleges and individuals to afford telescopes of their own. A great deal of emphasis was placed on reducing operating costs as well as the initial capital outlay. Robotic operation and high reliability were built into the telescopes to reduce the need for site infrastructure, reducing costs even further and minimising the impact on the environment.
In practice, the performance, cost and reliability goals we set ourselves are being met and surpassed, and the level of interest from potential customers shows that the assumptions we made about the market are proving correct. If you would like to find out more about New Generation Astronomical Telescopes please .
Neil Parker, October 3rd, 1999
Further details of the project can be found on the Faulkes Telescope Web Site
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