[meteorite-list] Spaceguard UK Campaign for NEO Telescope

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2008 16:05:59 -0800 (PST)
Message-ID: <200801190006.QAA20918_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/mid/7193928.stm

Asteroid telescope's fitting bill
BBC News
January 17, 2008

An observatory which monitors the potential threat to earth from
asteroids has launched a campaign to raise money to install a new
telescope.

The Spaceguard Centre in Knighton, Powys, has been offered the telescope
free of charge by the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge.

It would mean the centre could hunt for near earth objects as well as
tracking them once they have been discovered.

The cost to install and house the device has been estimated at ?54,000.

Known as a Schmidt camera, it has a wide field of view and takes
photographs of the sky, said Jay Tate, who runs the centre.

Mr Tate said images were compared to "see what had moved" and potential
comets or asteroids could then be identified.

He explained why the telescope had been offered to the centre.

"They can't use it in Cambridge anymore because of the light pollution,"
he said.

"This part of Wales has very dark skies so that wouldn't be a problem.

"Nasa searches for near earth objects and it funds six telescopes in the
US and two in Italy and Australia, but no-one else is doing this sort of
work in the UK.

"It would mean we could search for objects as well as tracking them once
they have been identified."

The Spaceguard Centre has a robotic telescope which is able to track
asteroids and it also has an observatory which attracts school parties
and tourists.

Mr Tate added that no funding was available from the Welsh Assembly
Government, the UK government or the National Lottery to help pay
towards installing the new telescope.

"I am now turning my attention to private sponsorship," he said.

Knighton's county councillor Ken Harris said the telescope would be a
"unique tourist attraction".

"It would be great if someone or an organisation could help the
Spaceguard Centre fund this expansion," he added.
Received on Fri 18 Jan 2008 07:05:59 PM PST