Bayfordbury Observatory Links The University And Public To The Stars

Bayfordbury Observatory, which is part of the University of Hertfordshire, has been helping students and the community become more aware and connected to the stars and planets as well as being the base for exciting research in astronomy.

Background

Bayfordbury Observatory is located twelve kilometres from the main Hatfield campus and is regarded as one of the best teaching observatories in the UK. For forty-four years it has been helping students and the community to see into the furthest reaches of the Universe, and closer to some pioneering discoveries. Built in 1969, the Observatory houses some of the most powerful and state-of-the-art telescope equipment available in the country. Along with its seven optical telescopes, the Observatory also houses its own planetarium as well as a 4.5m single dish radio telescope and a three dish interformeter. used to listen to radio signals from deep in space. It also forms part of an international community of observatories that are working together in order to gain advancements in astronomy.

Ground-breaking discoveries

Making headlines recently, the Observatory monitored a near-miss asteroid the size of a small office block that skimmed past Earth on Friday 15 February 2013. The asteroid had no chance of making contact with Earth, but was one of the closest brushes with a space rock of its size in recorded history. Astronomers, Dr Mark Gallaway and David Campbell were able to track the asteroid’s every movement through high powered telescopes and forms part of a much wider ‘Near Earth Objects’ research project, as Mark explains: “Objects like this asteroid highlights the dangers of so called ‘Near Earth Objects’ of which about ten thousand of the expected one million have been identified. “By monitoring its movements we will be able to improve our understanding of these potentially hazardous objects.”

Community interactions

Bayfordbury Observatory is always offering ways in which the local community can come and utilise its facilities. The Observatory is an integral part of the astronomy programme at the University with students frequently visiting through each year of their study. The observatory also offers open evenings which are tailored for adults, children, and amateur astronomers. Here the public meet with and talk to experienced astronomers and astronomy students from the University of Hertfordshire, as well as go on tours of the site and visit the planetarium. Bayfordbury Observatory also holds a special open evening every year as part of a series of events linked to the BBC’s television show ‘Stargazing Live’.

Find out More

To find our more about Bayfordbury, please visit the website