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400 Years of Telescopes in the Media

October 3, 2008 By
Giant Magellan Telescope/Carnegie Observatory

Artist's rendering of the Giant Magellan Telescope. Image credit: Giant Magellan Telescope/Carnegie Observatory

Scientists generally know of only one direction: forward! But sometimes it’s good to look back and take stock of what scientists have done in the past and what it all means. This week marked the perfect opportunity for retrospection for astronomers worldwide, precisely 400 years after the invention of the telescope, right here in the Netherlands. I’ve blogged about this important anniversary before, and I  wanted to flag up some nice media coverage. The uptake hasn’t been great in the mainstream media actually – but maybe I’ve missed it. Post a comment if you find a good story!

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Borg Astronomy

September 25, 2008 By

One thing that became clear from the talks at .Astronomy is that the days of our traditional model of observational astronomy are numbered, and the Web 2.0 lies at the very heart of the transformation. A shift is occurring in the philosophy of astronomical research.

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Beyond Hubble: Gearing up for JWST

September 21, 2008 By
NASA JPL-CalTech

This model of the MIRI detector (in green) is similar to the charge-coupled devices in digital cameras. It's housed in the brick-like unit called a focal plane module. Credit: NASA JPL-CalTech

The Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, has enabled some amazing advances in astronomy and enthralled people around the world with stunning imagery from space. A final servicing mission will travel to the Hubble later this year for one last upgrade to carry the telescope through to the end of its life.

Meanwhile, in laboratories across the US and Europe, preparations have been in full swing for Hubble’s successor, the James Webb Space Telescope. Just two days ago, NASA issued a press release reporting on a crucial milestone in the development of JWST’s instrument for the mid-infrared wavelength regime (from 5 to 28 microns), MIRI – website here. For the last 4 days I’ve been holed up in the lab over in the UK to help prepare for the final flight testing of MIRI, due to take place in a year’s time.

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Celebrate 400 Years of Telescopes

September 9, 2008 By

2008 marks the 400th anniversary of the invention of the telescope. Although Galileo famously carried out his first astronomical observations with a telescope in 1609, the first telescopes actually appeared in 1608, right here in the Netherlands. Dutch spectacle maker Hans Lipperhey was the first to apply for a patent after showing his new invention to Prince Maurits of Orange.

A number of events have been planned locally in the Netherlands to commemorate Lipperhey’s invention, which paved the way for generations of astronomers (like me!) to build ever bigger and better telescopes.

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