Create a telescope program focusing on education, research

July 1, 2006

This op-ed appeared July 1 in The Miami Herald and July 9 in The Gainesville Sun.

By: Stan Dermott
Stan Dermott is professor and chairman of the University of Florida’s Department of Astronomy.

As NASA prepares for the scheduled blastoff of the shuttle Discovery today, there’s little doubt that Cape Canaveral is the best place to launch space vehicles in the United States and perhaps the world.

Unfortunately, however, Florida is known mostly for its spectacular launches. The heart of the vast science and engineering research enterprise surrounding the nation’s space program, and much of the money, remains more than 2,000 miles away, in California.

The University of Florida’s partnership with Spain and Mexico in the world’s largest telescope — the subject of a meeting this week in Coral Gables — has the potential to change all that. This change can happen if Florida’s policymakers take advantage of the opportunity it creates for a statewide telescope program.

The Gran Telescopio Canarias is a $160 million telescope with a 34.1 foot mirror being built in Spain’s Canary Islands. When it is completed in 2008, it will have unprecedented power to pinpoint both extremely faint objects and very distant ones. Results are likely to range from the discovery of new planets to unlocking how the universe came into being.

At first glance, the GTC would seem to have little to do with space exploration. But one needs only to look at California to see how large Earth-based telescopes and exploration can benefit each other.

California is home to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, probably the leading powerhouse behind the nation’s space program. This laboratory has had a major role in the research behind the exploration of the moon, our solar system and the universe.

But the Jet Propulsion Laboratory did not grow in a vacuum. California’s leadership in university astronomy and telescope research have been the intellectual sparkplug igniting its engine.

Consider: The University of California is a partner in the W.M. Keck Observatory. Through this observatory, California owns and operates the twin Keck telescopes — until the GTC is finished, the world’s largest.

All astronomers in the California University System have access to the Keck telescopes, even those in the smallest departments. Not coincidently, many Golden State campuses have developed strong programs centered on building the multimillion-dollar instruments that decipher the data collected by these telescopes.

Faculty have built these instruments not only for the telescopes, but also for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s space missions. As a result, in California, success in astronomy has become an essential step to success in space exploration.

Florida already has many of the pieces in place to achieve a similar outcome.

The GTC is one. UF and two Mexican institutes own a 5 percent stake in the telescope, respectively, with the Spanish government owning 90 percent. UF’s ownership will give its astronomers exclusive use of the telescope for at least 12 nights annually and partial use for many more. That’s remarkable access to a facility that will likely cost $30,000 a night to operate.

Also, while UF has the largest astronomy department in the state, Florida has many other astronomers on other campuses. The University of Central Florida, for example, has an active astronomy program.

The Governor’s Commission on the Future of Space and Aeronautics in Florida argued in its final report in January that ”Florida’s competitiveness in space and aeronautics increasingly depends on its intellectual talent.” Accordingly, “The State must enhance its workforce, education and research capabilities.”

California achieved these goals by aligning its space exploration with its astronomical research. Florida should follow suit.

The state should create a statewide, university-based telescope program focusing on education and research. This program could tackle challenges ranging from nurturing high school students’ interest in astronomy to advocating for Florida astronomers’ access to the world’s largest telescopes to leading new research investigations. It could also work to snare federal and foundation dollars for Florida astronomers and encourage telescope technology spinoffs to the private sector.

Florida should be a launch pad not only for astronauts, but also for astronomers.