Astronomical observations in northern Canada

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For decades Canadian astronomers have obtained their observations from Chile and Hawaii because sites in these locations have been assumed to be the best in the world for astronomical observations. In particular, these locations appear to have very little atmospheric turbulence, leading to outstanding image quality. It is therefore extraordinarily exciting that some preliminary evidence has emerged which suggests that Ellesmere Island in Northern Canada may have images at least as good as the best sites in Chile and Hawaii. Does Canada host the world's finest astronomical observing site? In order to find out, the University of Toronto's Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics has begun construction of a pathfinder arctic observatory. This proposal seeks funding for student and postdoctoral travel to this observatory, and for the construction of small-scale instrumentation to better understand the quality of the observing site.