Collaborative Capability Building in Astrophysics with Thailand

LJMU天体物理研究所（ARI）最近与泰国续签了为期5年的谅解备忘录，内容涉及联合天文学发展合作。ARI的Mike Bode教授还帮助他们制定国家天文学发展的5年计划。泰国人通过泰国国家天文研究所（NARIT）正在利用天文学促进全国范围内的STEM学科的学习，以实现其经济的长期利益。为此，他们正在全国各地迅速建立几个公共观测站。例如，每个中心都雇用了大约10名全职外展工作人员，拥有天文馆、大型演讲空间、机器人望远镜以及与区域教育系统的密切联系。多年来，LJMU的国家学校观察站与泰国人建立了联系。作为Newton项目的一部分，我们通过为外联项目开发示范联合材料来进一步加强这些联系。此外，NARIT正在迅速发展泰国的天文研究基础设施，这也是因为它被视为泰国长期经济发展的重要组成部分。例如，他们现在在泰国最高峰Doi Inthanon上操作一台2.4米的望远镜，并通过一项计划迅速增加全国各地具有博士资格的工作人员的数量，该计划将学生送到国外攻读博士学位，然后将他们带回泰国永久的大学职位。他们热衷于与此同时发展自己的技术能力，并表示有兴趣成为LJMU 4米机器人利物浦望远镜2（LT 2）项目的未来合作伙伴，其资本成本为该项目的10%（1600万英镑）。对于LT 2，NARIT已经指出了他们可以在其他方面贡献软件或仪器的地方。在蓬勃发展的泰国天文学界，人们非常重视时间域，因此泰国天文台和ARI/LT/LT 2之间有着极好的学术契合。在短期内，ARI热衷于与NARIT合作的一个潜在领域是开发一种新型的快速光度计，用于他们的2.4米望远镜和LT/LT 2，与目前用于泰国国家望远镜的ULTRASPEC相比，其性能得到了大幅改善（负责LT天文学家的Chris Copperwheat博士积极参与了ULTRASPEC的开发）。为了获得最佳的QE和性能，我们将探索使用sCMOS相机技术而不是EMCCD制作新的快速光度计原型。为LT/LT 2开发这种能力将促进时域天文学中的一系列新科学：CV研究，asteroseismology，系外行星，掩星等。这项活动的第一步是对sCMOS探测器进行实验室测试，以确定其稳定性，灵敏度，噪声特性和在多光束设置中准确同步的能力。这项活动将形成仪器部分的基础上，这最初的牛顿基金赠款。总的来说，在这最初的3个月赠款，牛顿资金将使我们能够与泰国人合作，以扩大他们在这些活动中的参与范围，并开始软件和仪器合作的过程，沿着开发新的天文学推广项目。这将有助于促进与NARIT围绕LT 2建立更大的伙伴关系，并有利于泰国天文学和更广泛的泰国经济。

LJMU Astrophysics Research Institute (ARI) has recently renewed its 5 year MoU with Thailand covering cooperation on joint astronomy development. Professor Mike Bode at ARI is also helping them to develop their national 5 year plan for astronomy development.The Thais, through the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT) are using astronomy to foster the take-up of STEMM subjects nationally to the long-term benefit of their economy. To this end, they are rapidly developing several public observatories across the country. Each of these for example employs around ten full-time outreach staff, has a planetarium, large lecture space, robotic telescopes and strong links into the regional educational system. Over the years, LJMU's National Schools' Observatory has developed links with the Thais on outreach. As part of the Newton project we enhance these links further by developing exemplar joint materials for outreach projects.In addition, NARIT is rapidly developing the astronomical research infrastructure of Thailand, again because it is seen as an important part of their nation's long-term economic development. For example, they now operate a 2.4m telescope on Thailand's highest peak, Doi Inthanon, and are rapidly increasing the number of PhD-qualified staff across the country through a programme of sending students to study for their PhDs abroad and then bringing them back to Thailand in permanent university positions. They are keen to develop their technological capability in tandem with this and have expressed a strong interest in being a future partner in the LJMU 4m robotic Liverpool Telescope 2 (LT2) project at the level of 10% of the capital cost of the project (£16m). For LT2 NARIT have indicated where they may contribute software or an instrument among other aspects. There is a strong emphasis on the time domain in the burgeoning Thai astronomy community, so there is an excellent academic fit between the Thai's and ARI/LT/LT2. In the short term, one potential area ARI is keen to pursue with NARIT is developing a novel fast photometer for use on their 2.4m telescope and LT/LT2 with substantially improved performance compared to ULTRASPEC, which is currently used on the Thai National Telescope (Dr Chris Copperwheat, the LT astronomer-in-charge was heavily involved in the development of ULTRASPEC). For optimum QE and performance we would explore prototyping a new fast photometer using sCMOS camera technology, instead of EMCCDs. Developing this capability for LT/LT2 would facilitate a range of new science within time domain astronomy: CV studies, asteroseismology, exoplanets, occultations etc. The first step in this activity is laboratory testing of the sCMOS detectors to determine their stability, sensitivity, noise characteristics and ability to be accurately synchronised in a mutli-beam setup. This activity would form the basis of the instrumentation component of this initial Newton fund grant.Overall in this initial 3 month grant, Newton funding will enable us to work with the Thais to scope their participation in these activities and start the the process of software and instrument collaboration, along with developing new astronomy outreach projects. This will help to foster a larger partnership with NARIT centred on LT2 and to the benefit of Thai astronomy and the wider Thai economy.