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POn the straight ropes and the dome of the Altazimuth Pavilion at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich swings and opens to reveal a thick strip of London skies. The Victorian building is about to come out of a major renovation and inside the dome is the main attraction: a state-of-the-art telescope that will make Greenwich a work observatory for the first time in 60 years.
The installation of the astronomical telescope Annie Maunder (Amat) palpably excited the Greenwich staff. During the automakers' mandatory strike at work, Brendan Owens and Tom Kerss, both astronomers on the site, admit that they worked late, very late, to put the kit to the test. If they are tired of standing up every hour, they do not show it. "It's a bit addictive," says Owens.
Named after one of the first women to work in Greenwich, the £ 50,000 telescope is arguably the most impressive one that can be bought on the set. It has the power to capture still high magnification and moving images of the sun, moon and planets of the solar system. Further on, he will study the chemical composition of nebulae, these interstellar clouds of dust and gas, and observe extraterrestrial worlds such as the gigantic loop of 51 Pegasi b around their parent stars.
The images and readings taken by the telescope will support astrophysical research and will be shared with schools and the public through live streams, the nearby Peter Harrison Planetarium and workshops held at the observatory. To assist in the operation of the telescope, the observatory turns to volunteer teams, many of which are likely to come from local fan clubs. "We want to enjoy every clear night," said Kerss.
For the moment, the five meter wide dome is manually operated: turned and opened by ropes and pulleys. But there are plans to modernize the structure with motors and electronics so that the telescope and the dome can move in unison. This would allow the telescope to track objects for hours as they move through the night sky, and even track the International Space Station while traveling at over 17,500 miles per hour.
"The work of automation will be essential if we want to do more research projects," said Owens. "It's either that or we have someone who is extremely dedicated with the ropes."
Charles II founded the Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1675 to map the precise locations of the stars and thus improve the Navy's marine navigation. But since 1957, when his instruments and research were transferred to Herstmonceux in East Sussex, the London site has been a museum and public awareness center. With the new telescope in place, research is back on the agenda.
When the Altazimuth Pavilion opens to the public in August, the ground-floor exhibition space under the telescope will tell the stories of Annie Maunder and her husband Walter. Annie joined the observatory in 1891 after passing her exams at the University of Cambridge brilliantly. At the time, Cambridge did not award any female degrees, but Annie's clear mathematical skills earned her one of the few paid jobs in astronomy accessible to women.
Annie worked on solar observations, a department led by Walter Maunder, and when the two were married in 1895, she had to resign because of restrictions that prevented married women from working in the public service. The pair continued to collaborate, writing books together, going on an expedition to observe solar eclipses and mapping sunspots in a work that linked the sun's activity to the Earth's climate.
Noting that the Royal Astronomical Society did not allow women members at the time, Walter Maunder co-founded the British Astronomical Association, which explicitly welcomed women and people from all walks of life. Annie has continued to publish the journal of the association for 35 years.
In repelling a piece of bread that seemed to have fallen through the open dome of a passing bird, Greenwich astronomers explain that Amat is actually a group of four separate instruments. The largest, 14-inch reflector, can take high-resolution images of the sun, moon and planets, spotting features such as Jupiter's swirling red storm or dark spots on Neptune near the edge of the solar system . A second instrument is dedicated to the observation of the sun, while a third one that looks like a Tommy gun has a circular store of filters that can be swapped automatically to see distant nebulae at different lengths. wave of light. The fourth is a general purpose telescope.
The telescope cluster and the renovation of the pavilion were funded by grants, museum members and patrons, and public donations raised more than £ 150,000 for the project. The first images broadcast by the telescope reveal the rugged terrain of the gibbous moon and the fierce activity in the sun's atmosphere.
"We have just started our adventure," says Owens. "We want to make Greenwich a functional observatory and involve the public in this work, we want to have the best of both worlds."
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