Science and Technology Facilities Council
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Sir Bernard Lovell
Sir Bernard Lovell OBE FRS, the founder and first Director of the Jodrell Bank radio telescope in Cheshire, died recently (6 August 2012) aged 98.
Sir Bernard was one of the pioneers of radio astronomy both in the UK and worldwide and will be remembered not only for his work in getting the telescope at Jodrell Bank built but also for the legacy he leaves behind in UK involvement in major international radio telescope projects.
After his World War II service, for which he was later awarded an OBE, Lovell founded Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire, England, originally using ex-military radar to track cosmic rays. He worked with engineer Sir Charles Husband on the construction of what was then the world's largest steerable radio telescope (and remains one of the largest). This telescope, later named the Lovell Telescope in his honour, was used to measure accurate distances to the Moon and Venus, and to observe pulsars, quasars and gravitational lens.
Speaking about Sir Bernard, STFC Chief Executive Professor John Womersley said:
"It is with great regret that we mark the passing of one of the greatest radio astronomers of the 20th century. His contributions to global science, the teams of researchers he brought together and the work they produced have been incredibly influential. His pioneering work on linking radio telescopes together led directly to the current international project to create the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), which upon completion will be the world’s largest telescope.”
Construction of the SKA is due to start in 2016 and when complete it will address fundamental unanswered questions about our Universe including how the first stars and galaxies formed after the Big Bang, how galaxies have evolved since then, the role of magnetism in the cosmos, the nature of gravity, and the search for life beyond Earth. The project headquarters are at Jodrell Bank.
You can watch archive interviews with Sir Bernard online:
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