SECRETIVE decision-making was the 鈥渃atastrophic error鈥� behind the UK鈥檚 current physics funding crisis, according to the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
Last December, the UK鈥檚 Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) announced plans to axe a number of astronomy projects, such as the UK鈥檚 involvement in the Gemini observatory. Though Gemini astronomers won a stay of execution last week, the RAS the cuts: 鈥淭he STFC has failed miserably to communicate with the community,鈥� it said.
The RAS statement came on the same day as a proposal by the UK government, the STFC and other partners to build a new space facility at Harwell, Oxfordshire, and a review into sending a British astronaut into space. Andrew Kavanagh, a space scientist at Lancaster University, wants to know where the money will come from: 鈥淲e know that the STFC is broke. Are we sacrificing important astronomy and space science research for this?鈥�
Advertisement
