Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics

Department of Physics and Astronomy

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News Archive

• Black holes and warped space
  9 December 2010: Astronomers reveal first image from e-MERLIN, a powerful new array of radio telescopes linked across the UK.
• Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre - Ground Breaking
  20 September 2010: Scientists, builders and architects gathered today at Jodrell Bank to celebrate the beginning of construction of a new 'Live Science' Discovery Centre at the site.
• Lovell Telescope helps 'citizen scientists make an exciting find
  13 August 2010: Scientists from the University of Manchester have helped classify the first pulsar ever discovered by members of the public.
• NEXPReS - European developments in techniques for radio astronomy
  21 July 2010: The European Commission has awarded 3.5 million euros to advance computing and networking techniques for linking radio telescopes across Europe and beyond.
• Planck unveils the Universe - old and young
  5 July 2010: The Planck satellite - ESA's mission to study the early Universe - has delivered its first image of the entire sky. By looking at microwave radiation, it not only provides new insight into the way stars and galaxies form, but also tells us how the Universe itself came to life after the Big Bang.
• Cosmic clocks hold the key to the secrets of the Universe
  24 June 2010: An international team of scientists have found a promising way of turning natural cosmic clocks into superbly accurate time-keepers to study the powerful gravitational forces that have shaped the universe.
• Wonders of space brought down to Earth
  22 June 2010: Jodrell Bank astronomers deliver schools outreach programme alongside international research conference discussing the fate of stars like the Sun.
• Herschel finds bright galaxies like to stick together
  26 May 2010: Astronomers using the European Space Agency's Herschel telescope have discovered that the brightest galaxies tend to be in the busiest parts of the Universe.
• Funding announced for new Jodrell Bank 'live science' visitor centre
  21 May 2010: The NWDA and ERDF today confirmed funding of 3.1 million pounds to kick-start the development of a new Science Discovery Centre at Jodrell Bank Observatory
• Square Kilometre Array development strengthened with new appointments
  11 May 2010: The SKA Program Development Office today announced two new appointments at a crucial stage in the finalisation of the design for the world's largest radio telescope.
• Star formation processes revealed by Planck
  26 April 2010: New images from the Planck space observatory reveal the gas and dust between the stars and isolate the physical processes at work in our Galaxy. The new images are an eye-catching by-product of a spacecraft designed to look back at the earliest light in the Universe.
• Telescope link up will shed more light on extreme stars
  22 April 2010: A groundbreaking link up of three telescopes is to provide us with new insight into pulsars, the Universe's most extreme stars.
• Mystery object in starburst galaxy M82 possible microquasar
  14 April 2010: Jodrell Bank radio astronomers have discovered a strange new object in a nearby galaxy. The object, which appeared very suddenly and shows no signs of going away, does not appear to be like anything that has been seen in the Milky Way.
• First detailed look at young dusty discs around aging stars
  14 April 2010: Astronomers from Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics and the Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur have used the Very Large Telescope in Chile to discover discs of dust around aging stars.
• Planck space observatory unveils the coldest regions of our galaxy
  17 March 2010: Giant filaments of cold dust stretching through the coldest regions of our Galaxy are revealed in new images, released today (17th March), from ESA's Planck satellite.
• Jodrell Bank plans new 'live science' visitor centre
  10 March 2010: A new Discovery Centre to inspire the scientists of the future and showcase cutting-edge research 'as it happens' is being planned for The University of Manchester's Jodrell Bank Observatory.
• Magnetic control of massive stellar appetites
  18 February 2010: Astronomers have used the MERLIN telescope to show that magnetic fields play an important role during the birth of massive stars.
• Astronomers catch relativistic supernova
  28 January 2010: An international team of scientists have used a European network of radio telescopes to observe a supernova expanding at relativistic speeds.
• Jodrell Bank dragon hunt will be Christmas cracker
  22 December 2009: It's proved Einstein's theory of relativity, tracked the launch of Sputnik and probed the origins of the Universe - now the iconic Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank is being used to find dragons.
• Chromoscope
  3 December 2009: Astronomers from The University of Manchester's Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics and Cardiff University today revealed a new way for members of the public to explore the galaxy.
• Newly discovered star one of the hottest in Galaxy
  2 December 2009: Jodrell astronomers have discovered one of the hottest stars in the Galaxy hidden at the heart of the Bug Nebula - with a surface temperature of around 200,000 degrees it is 35 times hotter than the Sun.
• First fringes with ALMA
  19 November 2009: A team of astronomers and engineers have successfully combined signals from the first two telescopes of the Atacama Large Millimetre Array in the Andes mountains of Chile.
• Ticking stellar timebomb
  17 November 2009: Using ESO's Very Large Telescope, astronomers have identified a prime candidate for the long-sought progenitor of exploding stars known as Type Ia supernovae.
• Moonwatching in Manchester
  29 October 2009: Astronomers from Jodrell Bank headed out onto the streets of Manchester this week to show passers-by close-up views of the Moon and the planet Jupiter. The event was part of International Year of Astronomy's Moonwatch.
• ESA's 'time machine' takes first glimpse into the past
  17 September 2009: Planck, ESA's mission to study the early Universe, has successfully completed its initial test survey of the sky. This has confirmed that both the sophisticated cooling system and the scientific instruments, some of which Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics played a key role in building, are working well.
• Apollo 11 Astronaut Pays Tribute to Jodrell Bank
  19 July 2009: One of the first men to walk on the Moon paid tribute to Jodrell Bank astronomers today (Sunday 19 July 2009), at a special Moonbounce event at the Observatory to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landings.
• Jodrell Astrophysicist receives award for testing Einstein
  18 July 2009: Michael Kramer, Director of MPIfR in Bonn and Professor of Astrophysics at Jodrell Bank, has this week received the prestigious Marcel Grossman Award for his work using pulsars to test Einstein's theory of gravity.
• Recording of Russia's lunar gatecrash attempt released
  3 July 2009: Dramatic and previously unheard recordings of the moment Russians tried to gatecrash the American's Moon landing in 1969 have today been released by The University of Manchester's Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics.
• Lovell helps scientists solve gamma-ray mystery
  2 July 2009: Many of the fastest-spinning pulsars have been detected in gamma-rays for the first time by the Fermi satellite. These detections were made possible by observations using the Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank.
• The Lovell Telescope: One of Britain's Greatest Machines
  5 June 2009: In a new series for the National Geographic Channel, Chris Barrie visits Jodrell Bank to celebrate the Lovell Telescope as one of Britain's Greatest Machines.
• Jodrell Bank stars in European space mission
  12 May 2009: Cutting-edge engineering by staff at the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics will play a crucial role in the Planck spacecraft, a European space mission - due to blast off on Thursday 14 May - to study the fading glow of the Big Bang.
• UK 'superscope' gets first signals from space
  20 April 2009: e-MERLIN, a super-powerful new radio telescope network - which will allow astronomers to carry out three years worth of observations in a single day - has received its first signals from space at the University of Manchester's Jodrell Bank Observatory.
• Statement on the Cancellation of the CLOVER Project
  6 April 2009: The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) recently announced that it is cancelling CLOVER, a microwave background polarisation experiment.
• Heavyweight galaxies puzzle astronomers
  2 April 2009: Astronomers have discovered large galaxies some two thirds of the way back in time to the big bang. This surprising find casts doubt on theories of how the biggest galaxies form.
• Jodrell Bank to help star gazers travel 'Around the World in 80 Telescopes'
  2 April 2009: Scientists at Jodrell Bank are to be at the heart of a global astronomy marathon. 'Around the World in 80 Telescopes' is a 24-hour live video web-cast that will enable star-gazers to see what is happening at observatories around the world.
• 10 Million Euro Boost for Radio Astronomy in Europe
  26 March 2009: Scientists from Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics and their partners are to benefit from a Euro 10million grant, designed to support radio astronomy across Europe.
• Astronomers find dust around a primitive star
  15 January 2009: Astronomers have observed dust forming around a dying star in a nearby galaxy, giving them a glimpse into the early universe and enlivening a debate about the origins of all cosmic dust.
• Telescope the size of the Earth
  12 January 2009: Seventeen radio telescopes around the world join forces to carry out a unique 33-hour real-time observation to celebrate the launch of the International Year of Astronomy.

2008

• Honorary degree for Sir Bernard Lovell (3 December 2008)
  Four scientific pioneers were honoured by The University of Manchester, including Jodrell Bank's founder, Professor Sir Bernard Lovell, who received a 'Doctor of Science honoris causa' degree.
• Astronomy at the Labour Party Conference (26 September 2008)
  Astronomers from JBCA visited the Labour Party Conference to show off the Sun and promote the International Year of Astronomy.
• STFC Fellowships (22nd July 2008)
  JBCA are inviting applications from candidates wishing to be considered for STFC Advanced or Postdoctoral Fellowships.
• The Funding of Jodrell Bank Secured (10th July 2008)
  Update on the future funding of Jodrell Bank Observatory.
• Eclipses Again Prove Key for Einstein (3rd July 2008)
  Eclipses in a unique double pulsar system show "wobbles" exactly as predicted by Einstein.
• The future funding of e-MERLIN and Jodrell Bank (13th June 2008)
  The e-MERLIN project, due for completion in 2009, has received a glowing report from a panel of senior astronomers who say "it is guaranteed to lead to major discoveries" and "e-MERLIN could be a world-leading facility well into the next decade".
• Weird Stellar Pair Puzzles Scientists (15th May 2008)
  Astronomers have discovered a speedy spinning pulsar in an elongated orbit around an apparent Sun-like star, a combination never seen before, and one that has them puzzled about how the strange system developed.
• Astronomers find embryonic planet (2nd April 2008)
  Using radio observatories in the UK and US and computer simulations, a team of astronomers have identified the youngest forming planet yet seen.
• Is there life on other planets? (13th March 2008)
  As part of Science Week 2008, Jodrell Bank asks the Big Question "Is there life on other planets?", now available as a webcast.
• Giant Planets Not Lonely Hearts (14th February 2008)
  Two giant planets have been discovered in a planetary system strikingly similar to our own Solar System.
• Telescope back on track (4th February 2008)
  Popping a spare wheel onto a 3200-ton radio telescope is a whole different story from having to deal with a flat tyre at the roadside.

2007

2006