Universities partner to take over major telescope

From 1 July, the Australian National University, based in Canberra, will lead a conglomerate of 13 institutions to run the Anglo-Australian Telescope, located in Coonabarabran in the state of New South Wales, writes Geetanjali Rangnekar for Cosmos.

Australia’s largest optical telescope, the Anglo-Australian Telescope has been operational for more than four decades. When it began operating, the 3.9 metre device was the first of its kind to map the southern hemisphere skies. Housed at the picturesque Siding Spring Observatory, it has taken part in a multitude of missions that have added to humanity’s knowledge of the dark expanse out there.

The current restructure allows the Australian National University to take over operation of the telescope from the Australian Astronomical Observatory. This will allow Australian astronomers and universities to have unprecedented access to the highly sought-after advanced instruments, including a spectroscope capable of simultaneously observing 400 cosmic bodies. The academic partnerships will include universities from Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia.
Full report on the Cosmos site