UK funding cut puts Jodrell Bank and Lovell telescope under threat

Jodrell Bank Observatory is facing closure after UK government research funding for the facility was slashed, The Guardian reported. The deep space site includes the Grade I-listed Lovell telescope and anchors a network used to study galaxies, black holes, star formation, exoplanets, and the cosmic microwave background. UK Research and Innovation said it would withdraw funding for the e-Merlin network, the UK's national radio astronomy facility at Jodrell Bank, when the current agreement ends in March 2028. Scientists said observations at Jodrell Bank would end completely unless other funding is found. Scotland's astronomer royal, Prof Catherine Heymans, called the cut devastating for a world-leading facility. Further cuts across dozens of facilities, instruments, and projects are expected to result in about 800 job losses. Prof Simon Garrington, an associate director at Jodrell Bank, said withdrawing e-Merlin funding effectively pulls the rug out from under the observatory, threatening 28 jobs there and affecting nearly 3,000 researchers. He said he intends to challenge the decision and hopes satellite and space-debris tracking uses might attract alternative funds. Related STFC prioritisation also includes a 20% cut to UK participation in Chile's Rubin Observatory, a 45% cut to the Next-Generation Transit Survey, full withdrawal of funding for future instruments on the Extremely Large Telescope, and UK exit from the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration. An STFC spokesperson said the body had run a prioritisation process to focus investment on long-term scientific capability, impact, and value for the UK.