SOCORRO – On May 30, in Socorro, New Mexico, senior representatives of the British Government will attend a commemoration ceremony for retiring U.S. Senator Pete V. Domenici.
Her Majesty’s Consul, Kevin Lynch and Science Consul, Dr. May Akrawi will be in New Mexico to honor Senator Domenici’s commitment to UK/US scientific collaboration with Professor Peter Littlewood (Chair, Physics Department) and Dr. Dave Buscher from the University of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory visiting from the UK for this occasion. At the May 30 event, the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology will rename the National Radio Astronomy Observatory’s Array Operations Center as the “Pete V. Domenici Science Operations Center”.
In recent years, Sen. Domenici has championed many cutting edge scientific projects, including the Magdalena Ridge Observatory, a collaborative project between the University of Cambridge in England and the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.
"On behalf of the British Government and our science community, we would like to thank Senator Domenici for all his support for this historic scientific project. With his help and support for the Magdalena Ridge Observatory, US and UK scientists will be able to continue in the footsteps of their predecessors in transatlantic collaboration and together make discoveries to benefit mankind," said Her Majesty's Consul General, Paul Lynch. He added that “The Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge is one of the world’s leading institutions in Physics and Astronomy and was home to one of our greatest transatlantic collaborations, the discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953”.
The Magdalena Ridge Observatory (MRO) is primarily intended for astronomical research and will be composed of two facilities; a single 2.4-meter telescope and an array of optical/infrared telescopes called an interferometer.
The University of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory has devoted two full-time researchers to the project, as well as its expertise and experience with interferometers. Since 2002, Cambridge has invested about $16 million (£8M) in-kind in building a world-class instrument in New Mexico.
With full funding, the interferometer will be composed of six 1.4 meter telescopes. These telescopes will be spaced by distances of up to 340 meters and optically linked to create images of astronomical objects – the detail of which will be unprecedented. The array telescopes will simulate the resolving power of a single telescope up to 340 meter in diameter and thus will be able to resolve objects with 100 times the resolution of the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Cavendish Laboratory pioneered applications of interferometry in the radio spectrum in the 1960’s and developed this into the visible spectrum with a prototype small telescope called COAST – the Cambridge Optical Aperture Synthesis Telescope – a decade ago.
After three years of operation, COAST had only a handful of nights with clear skies.
“We get 300 nights of clear skies every year,” said Dave Westpfahl, deputy principal investigator for the MRO. “They brought the expertise and we had the site.”
Located at 3,320 meters altitude atop Mount Baldy, the observatory features three “arms” that are 420 feet long, a unique feature for a mountaintop site, Westpfahl said. This makes for an ideal site to study distance galaxies as they evolve. The array will also be 100 times more sensitive than any existing optical interferometer. This unprecedented combination will enable scientists to study in detail physical processes which until now were too small to see at the great distances typical of astronomical objects. They will be able to watch the final moments of dying stars and study the formation of planets around other stars and get close to the heart of active galaxies.
New Mexico Tech has received $53 million from the U.S. Congress for construction and implementation of the program and has requested another $15 million.
“If it weren’t for Sen. Domenici’s ability to secure major funding, we would not have had this opportunity to join this extraordinary partnership with Cambridge,” New Mexico Tech President Daniel H. López said. “Sen. Domenici was the spearhead and the lightning rod to help form this partnership.”
The operations centre, using the combined scientific knowledge of the University of Cambridge and New Mexico Tech is designed to reveal the mysteries hidden in black holes at the centers of these galaxies. This information is vital to our understanding of how the universe is evolving. For the duration of his 36 years in public service, Sen. Domenici has always supported advanced research in his home state of New Mexico.
“The Senator has always been a strong supporter of astronomy and astrophysics,” said Dr. Van Romero, vice president of research and economic development at New Mexico Tech. “The Magdalena Ridge Observatory and its partners – the University of Cambridge and New Mexico Tech – have benefited greatly from Senator Domenici’s commitment to world-class science that uses the natural assets of New Mexico.”
Recently, the United States’ National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) asked for assistance from the scientists at the Magdalena Ridge Observatory. NASA scientists were tracking an asteroid that they believed might be on a collision course with Mars. Using the 2.4-meter telescope, MRO scientists determined that the asteroid would sail past our neighboring planet.
As a result of that work, Magdalena Ridge Observatory was awarded $825,000 by NASA’s Planetary Astronomy-Near Earth Object Program to continue to track objects that could potentially collide with Earth.
“We expect to do astrometric follow-up, determining the orbits of at least 50 objects per month. This will result in data for about 500 near-Earth objects per year,” said Dr. Eileen Ryan, principal investigator and project manager for the observatory.
Additional studies will characterize the sizes, rotation rates, composition and internal structures and strengths of near-Earth asteroids. Understanding such information can be important in deciding how to deal with a potentially dangerous object, Ryan said.
Notes to Editors:
New Mexico Tech
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology is a state-supported university that was founded in 1889 in Socorro, N.M. New Mexico Tech specializes in educating scientists and engineers who are leaders of industry, commerce and education. Tech faculty and researchers conduct cutting-edge research in areas from astrophysics and biology to mining and petroleum engineering. With rigorous admission standards, the student body represents all 50 states and 49 countries. The university has partnerships and research projects on every continent, including Antarctica. The university lives up to its motto: “The Greatest School You’ve Never Heard Of.”
Cavendish Laboratory
The Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge in the UK, was founded in 1871, along with the appointment of James Clerk Maxwell as the first Cavendish Professor. It has a distinguished intellectual history, with 29 Nobel prizewinners who worked for considerable periods within its facilities, and is associated with many notable discoveries, including the electron and the structure of DNA.
University of Cambridge
As the University of Cambridge approaches its eight-hundredth anniversary in 2009, it is looking to the future. Its mission is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. It admits the very best and brightest students, regardless of background, and offers one of the UK’s most generous bursary schemes.
The University of Cambridge’s reputation for excellence is known internationally and reflects the scholastic achievements of its academics and students, as well as the world-class original research carried out by its staff. Some of the most significant scientific breakthroughs occurred at the University, including the splitting of the atom, invention of the jet engine and the discoveries of stem cells, plate tectonics, pulsars and the structure of DNA. From Isaac Newton to Stephen Hawking, the University has nurtured some of history’s greatest minds and has produced more Nobel Prize winners than any other UK institution with over 80 laureates.
UK Science & Innovation Network in the US:
The Science & Innovation team in Houston is part of the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Network of Global Science Attaches. They work to promote links between science and innovation providers and users in the United Kingdom and the United States in industry, academia and research institutions by identifying and supporting opportunities for collaboration between those on the cutting-edge of science and innovation. In addition, they will work to see that UK policy-makers are fully informed about any developments in the US, as well as promote the United Kingdom as a world-class leader in science and innovation.
For more information, please contact UK Science & Innovation Consul in Houston, Dr. May Akrawi, on 713-659-6270 x2134 or may.akrawi@fco.gov.uk (www.uksciencetech.com).
The UK and the U.S. already have an extensive history of S&T collaboration based on the exchange of ideas and best practices in science and innovation policy. The total flow of research and development investment between the UK and the U.S. is larger than between any other two countries in the world—approximately $4 billion (£2.2 billion) in each direction.