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In 2021 we have continued to be an organisation that values and supports diversity, equity and inclusivity with Gold Pleiades status for our UWA node from the Astronomical Society of Australia. Like most of our partner institutes nationally and around the world, we are still impacted by COVID-19, with occasional working from home and virtual learning being part of life. The hybrid online/city hub ASA conference this month was a success and helped reduce our overall carbon footprint.
The Australian federal government announced in April an investment of $63 million to establish a centre in Perth to process and analyse data from the SKA radio telescope. Just last month, the SKAO announced a green light for construction of the telescopes. ICRAR will be a significant participant in SKA construction, working closely with CSIRO and our international SKA colleagues. We look forward to construction starting soon in the mid-west.
Please enjoy our recent highlights and news from the past few months!
Professor Peter Quinn, ICRAR Executive Director
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| THOUSANDS OF GALAXIES CLASSIFIED IN A BLINK OF AN EYE |
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| Astronomers have designed and trained a computer program which can classify tens of thousands of galaxies in just a few seconds, a task that usually takes months to accomplish. |
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| FIRST LIGHT IMAGES FROM SPIRIT 6 |
SPIRIT 6 has taken its first images of the night sky from the new Mardella Observatory.
The first light images were a collaboration between SPIRIT Program Manager Paul Luckas and telescope donor Colin Eldridge – we think you’ll agree they are beautiful photographs of our night sky. |
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| in/visible light: An exhibition of astrophotography and radio astronomy images |
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Radio telescopes can see invisible radio waves, and in this regional museum exhibition, so can you. Compare stunning astrophotos taken by skilled astrophotographers to their radio telescope counterparts, like these images of M81.
Museum of Geraldton July to August
Museum of the Great Southern August to October |
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| July 16, 2021 |
| GALACTIC FIREWORKS: STUNNING FEATURES OF NEARBY GALAXIES REVEALED |
| Breathtaking images of galaxies close to the Milky Way have been released by an international team of astronomers exploring the mystery of how stars are born. |
| Read More |
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| April 21, 2021 |
| OUTBACK RADIO TELESCOPE DISCOVERS DENSE, SPINNING, DEAD STAR |
| Astronomers have discovered a pulsar—a dense and rapidly spinning neutron star sending radio waves into the cosmos—using a low-frequency radio telescope in outback Australia. |
| Read More |
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| APRIL 16, 2021 |
| $64 MILLION FOR WA TO PROCESS SIGNALS FROM THE DAWN OF TIME |
| The federal government will invest $64.4 million to establish a centre in Perth to process and analyse data from the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope. |
| Read More |
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| MARCH 18, 2021 |
| ASTRONOMERS SEE A ‘SPACE JELLYFISH’ |
| A radio telescope located in outback Western Australia has observed a cosmic phenomenon with a striking resemblance to a jellyfish. |
| Read More |
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| MARCH 5, 2021 |
| CURTIN RESEARCHER HELPS FIND LARGEST SUPERNOVA REMNANT BY LOOKING IN RIGHT PLACE |
| An international team of researchers, using powerful new X-ray telescope eROSITA to conduct the first all-sky X-ray survey in 25 years, have detected the largest supernova remnant ever discovered with X-rays, dubbed Hoinga. |
| Read More |
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| FEBRUARY 23, 2021 |
| GHOST PARTICLE FROM SHREDDED STAR REVEALS COSMIC PARTICLE ACCELERATOR |
| From a black hole to the South Pole: Scientists identify first neutrino from a tidal disruption event. |
| Read More |
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| FEBRUARY 23, 2021 |
| BIG GALAXIES STEAL STAR-FORMING GAS FROM THEIR SMALLER NEIGHBOURS |
| Large galaxies are known to strip the gas that occupies the space between the stars of smaller satellite galaxies. |
| Read More |
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| FEBRUARY 19, 2021 |
| FIRST BLACK HOLE EVER DETECTED IS MORE MASSIVE THAN WE THOUGHT |
| New observations of the first black hole ever detected have led astronomers to question what they know about the Universe's most mysterious objects. |
| Read More |
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| Beyond Astronomy |
ICRAR-Curtin researchers have been working with the Defence Science and Technology Group to investigate high power microwave (HPM) effects on electronic components. They will analyse the effects of HPM pulses on circuit responses, seeking to understand failure mechanisms and validate semiconductor modelling and simulation results.
ICRAR-UWA researchers have been working with the CRC for Honey Bee Products and the bee industry, to develop a deep learning system to allow for automatic classification and clustering of a variety of honey samples to determine unique chemical signatures as well as levels of adulteration and authenticity. |
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| In case you missed it: Astronomy news |
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| 12-16 July 2021 |
| Hub model for ASA conference |
| The Astronomical Society of Australia (ASA) Annual Science Meeting 2021 was a hybrid model of online and in person, with hubs in Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide and Perth. |
| Read More about the Perth Hub |
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| Save the date 13th November 2021 |
| Astrofest |
| Save the date for Astrofest in November this year! |
| Join the Facebook Event |
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| Nancy Millis Medal |
| Associate Professor Cathryn Trott has been awarded the mid-career honorific, the Nancy Millis Medal, for her work on the Epoch of Reionization. |
| Read More |
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| Meet an Astronomer |
| Have you met Kat Ross? She’s a PhD student at ICRAR-Curtin University, and studies baby black holes! |
| Watch now |
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| July 9, 2021 |
| ICRAR CELEBRATES NAIDOC WEEK |
| ICRAR is a strong supporter of NAIDOC week, and acknowledging the Wajuk Noongar people, the traditional custodians of the land UWA and Curtin University are situated on, and the Wajarri Yamatji people, the traditional owners of the Murchison Radio Astronomy Observatory site. |
| Read More |
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| July 13, 2021 |
| ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA HONOURS STARGAZERS AT ANNUAL CONFERENCE |
| Former ICRAR/UWA Masters student Madeleine McKenzie has been awarded the Bok Prize by the by the Astronomical Society of Australia (ASA) — the country’s professional body for the field. |
| Read More |
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| CONTACT |
| Latest edition of contact: the SKA magazine |
| All the latest from the SKA Office in Manchester, UK. |
| Read More |
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