The transparent observatory: opening the James Gregory Telescope to the public

透明天文台：向公众开放詹姆斯格雷戈里望远镜

• 批准号: ST/L001411/1
• 负责人: Alexander Scholz
• 金额: $ 0.81万
• 依托单位: University of St Andrews
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2014 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ST%2FL001411%2F1
• 关键词: transparent; observatory; opening; James; Gregory

The goal of this proposal is to transform the James Gregory Telescope (JGT) at the University of St. Andrews into a 'transparent observatory', i.e. an observatory where the public can experience world-class research as it happens. In the long-term this initiative aims to establish the JGT as a scientific and cultural icon in Scotland and as a focal point for the science outreach in St. Andrews. In the following we will show how we will achieve this goal. Under 'objectives' we list our key goals.We will set up weekly open nights at the JGT, i.e. evenings where the public can visit the telescope and experience it in action. If the weather allows it, these evenings will be used for scientific observations, for example for hunting extrasolar planets. The visitors will be introduced to the history and the research of the observatory by the on-site astronomer. The on-site astronomers can be staff members, postdoctoral researchers, or advanced postgraduate students. They will be trained by the Observatory Director for these events. Once set up and properly promoted, the events are sustainable as a long-term initiative. Through these open nights, the research carried out in the School of Physics and Astronomy and other astronomy groups in Scotland will be communciated to a large and diverse audience.To kickstart this initiative, we ask for funding from STFC. In particular, we need resources to advertise the initiative. Using facilities at the University of St. Andrews, we will design and print leaflets and posters for the observatory. Leaflets will be distributed through the tourist office in St. Andrews to visitors and through the University to students. We already maintain contacts to many primary and secondary schools through previous initiatives; our aim is now to provide about 1000 schools in Scotland with a poster of the observatory and to invite school classes to visit the site of the observatory. Furthermore, we plan to present the observatory to the amateur astronomers in Scotland, a group that can effectively spread the word about our initiative and thus multiply our efforts. For this to happen, we will visit the main amateur organisations in Scotland, give talks, inform about the observatory, and encourage them to stay in contact. On the ground floor of the observatory we will set up a permanent exhibition illustrating the equipment, historic context, the observations, and the ongoing research. This exhibition is already partially in place, additional funding is necessary for poster walls and printing. We will add a desktop computer with display that continuously shows the incoming images from the telescope and results from the analysis, to 'broadcast' the scientific work to the visitors.We will establish a new website for the observatory, where all information about the telescope and the open nights are presented. Instead of the current static website, the key goal is to include a weblog which can regularly be updated with information on current research projects and events. The framework for such a dynamic website will be created in a summer project by students at the University of St. Andrews, for which funding needs to be reserved.Finally, the new initiative will be advertised once a year with a press release through the press office at the University of St. Andrews, to reach the important audience of journalists and bloggers.

该提案的目标是将圣安德鲁斯大学的詹姆斯·格雷戈里望远镜（JGT）改造成一个“透明天文台”，即公众可以体验世界级研究的天文台。从长远来看，这一举措旨在将JGT建立为苏格兰的科学和文化标志，并成为圣安德鲁斯科学推广的焦点。在下文中，我们将展示如何实现这一目标。在“目标”一栏，我们列出了我们的主要目标。我们将在JGT设立每周开放之夜，即公众可以参观望远镜并体验它的运行。如果天气允许，这些夜晚将用于科学观测，例如寻找系外行星。现场的天文学家将向参观者介绍天文台的历史和研究。现场天文学家可以是工作人员、博士后研究人员或高级研究生。天文台台长将为他们提供有关这些活动的培训。一旦建立并适当推广，这些活动就可以作为一项长期倡议而持续下去。通过这些开放的夜晚，在苏格兰的物理与天文学院和其他天文团体进行的研究将被传达给大量不同的观众。为了启动这一计划，我们要求STFC提供资金。特别是，我们需要资源来宣传这项倡议。我们将利用圣安德鲁斯大学的设施，为天文台设计和印刷传单和海报。传单将通过圣安德鲁斯的旅游局分发给游客，并通过大学分发给学生。我们已经通过以往的活动与许多中小学保持联系；我们现在的目标是为苏格兰大约1000所学校提供天文台的海报，并邀请学校班级参观天文台的所在地。此外，我们计划将天文台介绍给苏格兰的业余天文学家，他们可以有效地传播我们的倡议，从而增加我们的努力。为了实现这一点，我们将访问苏格兰的主要业余组织，进行会谈，介绍天文台，并鼓励他们保持联系。在天文台的底层，我们将设立一个永久性的展览，展示设备、历史背景、观测结果和正在进行的研究。这次展览已经部分到位，需要额外的资金用于海报墙和印刷。我们将增加一台带有显示屏的台式电脑，它可以不断地显示来自望远镜的传入图像和分析结果，向参观者“广播”科学工作。我们将为天文台建立一个新的网站，在那里展示有关望远镜和开放之夜的所有信息。与目前的静态网站不同，其主要目标是包含一个可以定期更新当前研究项目和事件信息的博客。这样一个动态网站的框架将由圣安德鲁斯大学（University of St. Andrews）的学生在一个暑期项目中创建，该项目需要预留资金。最后，这项新倡议将通过圣安德鲁斯大学的新闻办公室每年发布一次新闻稿，以吸引重要的记者和博客读者。