[ASA] Astronomy in Australia newsletter - issue 23

[Department of Industry, Science and Resources]

Department of Industry, Science and Resources - Astronomy in Australia
newsletter - issue 23
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Astronomy in Australia

ISSUE 23 | SEPTEMBER 2022


Editorial

FRED WATSON, AUSTRALIA'S ASTRONOMER-AT-LARGE
Arguably the biggest astronomy news to hit the planet since the last
edition of this newsletter was the successful deployment and commissioning
of the 6.5-metre James Webb Space Telescope.

The telescope is an international collaboration between NASA, the European
Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), but Australia also
has a role. Not only is roughly one third of the telescope’s
data downloaded via CSIRO’s Tidbinbilla Deep Space Network
facility, but an Australian-designed interferometric mask enhances one of
JWST’s scientific instruments. The device, developed by
Professor Peter Tuthill of the University of Sydney, enables effective
suppression of the light of a star to reveal faint nearby features such as
protoplanetary discs.

In the two months since its first science images were released, the
infrared-optimised Webb Telescope has produced an impressive array of
science. This includes its first image of an exoplanet (HIP65426b), the
first unequivocal detection of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of an
exoplanet (WASP 39b), spectacular infrared images of the grand-design
spiral galaxy M74 and the more distant Cartwheel Galaxy and, of course, the
amazing Webb First Deep Field, revealing galaxies with look-back times up
to 13.1 billion years.

We look forward to much, much more.

An event of almost equal significance in the life and times of our
department’s Astronomy Strategy Group was the retirement of
the legendary Dr Andrew Stevenson, its Assistant Manager for many years. A
physicist at heart, but also a fastidious and highly capable public
servant, Andrew is gifted with a deep knowledge of… well,
everything, along with unbridled generosity in sharing it. Ever a team
player, he had a significant role in the development and implementation of
key science policy, including the 10-year Australia-ESO Strategic
Partnership.

Just as memorable is Andrew’s astute and incisive wit, giving
him the ability to reduce any random colleague to tears of laughter. He
could have been a comedy script-writer. And if there was any doubt about
the affection in which Andrew was held throughout the department and the
astronomical community, the 47 pages of tributes presented to him at his
farewell in June would dispel it all.

We wish Andrew a very long and happy retirement, and fully expect to see
his name in the author-lists of research papers on gravitational-wave
astronomy – as well as in the credits of future ABC sit-coms.



SKA update





BOB ECCLES, DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE AND RESOURCES
The SKA is in an exciting period, with construction work taking place in
organisations around the world, and construction at the telescope sites in
Australia and South Africa due to begin in the coming months.

The SKA Observatory (SKAO) has been busy over the past 12 months
undertaking procurement activities for the major on-site work. This
includes infrastructure work packages available to Australian businesses
for the construction camp, power and fibre networks, buildings and roads
for the SKA-Low telescope in Australia. The first of this work is due to
begin at site later this year.

The Commonwealth, CSIRO and the Wajarri Yamaji, the Native Title Holders of
CSIRO’s Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory (MRO) in Mid
West Western Australia, have been working together over several years to
agree a new Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) for the MRO. The ILUA will
provide intergenerational benefits for the Wajarri Yamaji and access for
the SKAO to build the SKA-Low telescope.

The Wajarri Yamaji held a community meeting on 10 September 2022 to vote on
authorising the ILUA. The ILUA was overwhelmingly supported and has now
been lodged with the National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT). Once all the
documents have been checked by the Registrar a one month registration
period will commence.



ESO news



Time allocation success for Australian astronomers

ROMY PEARSE, ASTRONOMY AUSTRALIA LIMITED
Two teams of astronomers have recently each been awarded substantial
amounts of observing time on one of the most in-demand instruments at the
European Southern Observatory (ESO) – the Multi Unit
Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on the Very Large Telescope (VLT).

The teams are led by The University of Sydney and by The University of
Western Australia node of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy
Research (ICRAR/UWA). Astronomers Jesse van de Sande (University of
Sydney), Barbara Catinella and Luca Cortese (both from ICRAR/UWA) were
awarded 317 hours and 173 hours respectively over the next two years as
part of ESO’s Large Program process.

This will allow them to lead international teams of astronomers to
perform deep observations of the Milky Way’s galactic cousins
and reveal the physics of star formation and galaxy evolution in some of
the most massive structures in the Universe.  

The instrument in question, VLT/MUSE, is an integral field spectrograph
yielding 3D views of galaxies. Observing time is highly sought-after by
astronomers located in ESO member states and those located in Australia,
ESO’s strategic partner.

Less than one in 5 requests submitted are approved every year. With such a
competitive application process to navigate, the hundreds of hours awarded
to the following projects goes to show how Australian-based astronomers are
proving themselves on the world’s stage, continuing to compete
and collaborate with the best in their respective fields.



Australian ESO proposal workshop 2022

STUART RYDER, ASTRONOMY AUSTRALIA LIMITED
In anticipation of the ESO Period 111 proposal deadline on 27 September,
AAL and Australia’s ESO Scientific Technical Committee and
Users Committee representatives (Michael Murphy and Sarah Sweet,
respectively) held an online ESO proposal-writing workshop on 8 September.

Topics covered included:
the Observing Programmes Committee process summary of current and imminent
ESO instrumentation the dual-anonymous proposal and distributed peer review
processes. These topics were followed by a round-table discussion about
what makes a compelling proposal involving a panel of major users of ESO
and past OPC members, and common mistakes to avoid, as well as helpful
feedback on proposal ideas from workshop participants.

The workshop was recorded, and can be made available on request to anyone
unable to join the event live.



Domestic astronomy news



AAT productivity

CHRIS LIDMAN, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
As of 1 July, the Anglo-Australian Telescope has been funded by a
consortium 11 Australian universities. The consortium continues to
support the telescope’s operations at a level that is still
producing outstanding science.

The latest global update on astronomical publications by Dennis Crabtree,
NRC Herzberg Astronomy & Astrophysics (April 2022) ranks the AAT as 6th in
total impact among the 26 largest ground-based optical telescopes, and 8th
in total research papers published.

This places it ahead of all but 3 of the world’s 8-metre
class facilities. This is an extraordinary achievement for an ageing
4-metre telescope on a temperate-climate site. 



GOTO-South, a new telescope for Siding Spring Observatory

CHRIS LIDMAN, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
Located south of the equator and roughly midway between Chile and South
Africa, Siding Spring Observatory (SSO) is in a prime position to discover
and follow-up cataclysmic astrophysical events such as supernovae and
merging neutron stars.

The number of telescopes currently based at SSO for this reason numbers
almost half a dozen. Soon, there will be one more.

Over the next few weeks, concrete will be poured to create a platform for a
new telescope at SSO. Located mid-way between the AAT and the top-of the
mountain, GOTO-South is being built by the University of Warwick in
collaboration with Monash University and several other universities.

Once built, GOTO-South will join its sister telescope, GOTO-North, on La
Palma in the Canary Islands, and together they will scan the skies
searching for the optical afterglow of gravitational wave events discovered
by gravitational wave observatories such as LIGO in the US, Virgo in Italy
and KAGRA in Japan.

To date, only one optical afterglow has ever been connected to
gravitational wave event, and it’s been five years since that
event occurred. Once GOTO-South and GOTO-North start operations, we can
expect several similar events to be discovered every year.



Hector observing at the AAT

JULIA BRYANT, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY
Hector, the new multi-object integral field spectrograph instrument for the
AAT, has successfully begun observations of galaxies. Over the past 6
months, the Hector instrument has been commissioned on the AAT and is now
successfully imaging galaxies in ‘3D’.

This means the galaxies are not only imaged, but at 61-169 points across
that image, a spectrum is taken simultaneously. This results in an image
cube that not only reveals the composition of galaxies but more importantly
can map the dynamics and kinematics of the stars and the gas across each
galaxy.

This information reveals how galaxies accrete gas to form stars, build up
angular momentum, and grow into the many different morphological types seen
in the nearby Universe.

The Hector instrument was built by the Astralis instrumentation Consortium
and will carry out a survey of 15,000 galaxies, with the highest spectral
resolution of any integral field galaxy survey in the world, opening a new
window in understanding how environment shapes galaxies of all sizes.



Dark and quiet skies news

MARNIE OGG, AUSTRALASIAN DARK SKY ALLIANCE
In May, the Australasian Dark Sky Alliance (ADSA) submitted a report to the
then Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment, on the
Benefits of a Dark Sky Network in Australia. The report drew on data
collected in surveys from Local Council authorities, dark sky advocates and
aspirants, policymakers, and dark sky lighting experts.

ADSA was asked to draw on the considerable depth of board experience and
insights from the report to make recommendations on how further education
and conservation efforts could be promoted in this area.



International astronomy news



Giant Magellan Telescope

GMT MEDIA
The Giant Magellan Telescope has secured a $205 million investment from its
international consortium to accelerate construction. This investment marks
one of the largest funding rounds for the telescope since its founding.

It includes leading commitments from the Carnegie Institution for
Science, Harvard University, the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP),
The University of Texas at Austin, University of Arizona, and the
University of Chicago.

The investment will be used to manufacture the 12-storey telescope
structure at Ingersoll Machine Tools in Illinois, continue progress on the
telescope’s seven primary mirrors at the University of
Arizona’s Mirror Lab, and build one of the
world’s most advanced spectrographs.

Read more on the GMT website.



General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union

With the theme of ‘Astronomy for All’, the 2022
General Assembly of the IAU took place from 2 to 11 August in Busan,
Republic of Korea, and online. A full program of events was well attended
by Australian astronomers, and rated as a highly successful GA.


Frank Drake, 1930-2022

With sadness we report the death of Professor Frank Drake in California on
2 September at the age of 92. Famous for the Drake Equation he developed in
1961 to estimate the number of civilisations in the Milky Way Galaxy with
which we might be able to communicate, Drake was also instrumental in SETI,
the Search for Extra-terrestrial Intelligence. His work inspired
generations of astrobiologists, astronomers and space scientists.


Outreach news



Astrofest

WA, SATURDAY 29 OCTOBER 2022
Curtin University will host the annual Astronomy WA Astrofest.

This wonderful, free event is aimed at all ages and attracts around 4,000
members of the public. As with previous years, attendees will be able to
hear talks on astronomy, gaze into the night with big telescopes, explore
an astrophotography exhibition and, the kids’ perennial
favourite, make radio telescopes out of Lego

Learn more




Starfest

NSW, 30 SEPTEMBER - 1 OCTOBER 2022
As usual on the October long weekend, Siding Spring Observatory will play
host to local and interstate visitors with its annual StarFest. It kicks
off in time-honoured fashion with Science in the Pub, a live event at the
Coonabarabran Golf Club following two years of virtual SciPubs. MC Matt
Dodds and a line-up of stellar guest panellists will host a fun-filled
evening discussing the mysteries of the Universe.

The following day, Siding Spring opens its gates to the public from 9.30am
with telescope tours, solar viewing, food stalls and talks for adults and
youngsters, including this year’s Bok Lecture to be given by
gravitational-wave specialist Susan Scott of ANU. 

Learn more




Australia’s ‘Einstein Eclipse’

Just 100 years ago, on 21 September 1922, a total eclipse of the Sun
occurred in Australia, the path of totality straddling the continent from
west to east. It attracted worldwide attention as the first real
opportunity to test Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity
since the famous May 1919 eclipse, and attracted several scientific
expeditions to our country.

The event was commemorated by a public talk in Sydney by Fred Watson on 20
September (with a virtual repeat planned for later in the year if you
can’t make it to Sydney). The eclipse is also described in
detail in a new book to be published in March 2023 – Eclipse
Chasers edited by Nick Lomb and Toner Stevenson (CSIRO Publishing).



Back to top




Professor Fred Watson
Astronomer-at-large
On behalf of the astronomy teams
Science and Commercialisation Policy Division
Department of Industry, Science and Resources
ska at industry.gov.au | opticalastronomy at industry.gov.au
GPO Box 2013   Canberra ACT 2601

Supporting economic growth and job creation for all Australians.

Copyright © 2022 Commonwealth of Australia. All rights reserved.




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Our department recognises the First Peoples of this nation and their
ongoing connection to culture and country. We acknowledge First Nations
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world's oldest living culture and pay respects to their Elders past,
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