Brit stargazers get Gemini reprieve

British astronomers will continue to enjoy access to the Gemini telecope programme following an apparent Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) U-turn on its decision last month to withdraw from the consortium. The shock announcement would have left the UK's stargazers unable to view the Northern Hemisphere sky with …

[fred]

wrong sky

"the Northern Hemisphere sky with Gemini's 8.1m telescopes in Hawaii and the Chilean Andes, "

The Gemini observatory, in Chile (Pachon), views the southern hemispere and not the northern hemisphere, but the Chilean Pisco might turn your world upside down :)

[Graham Newton]

Chile in northern hemisphere!

How do they view the "northern hemisphere skies" from Chile?

[Martin Beckett]

It's a farce

You can still view the Northern sky from Gemini South - just not as much of it.

Most of UK Astronomy for the last 50years has been a similair farce.

The southern sky is a lot more interesting for a lot of science than the north.

The Europeans propose building a southern observatory in Chile - we don't join because they are a bunch of damn foreigners.

Instead we build a telescope with the Aussies (at least they play cricket). The australian telescope is rather old fashioned design - the Eurpoean one turns out to be rather excellent.

The europeans then build a huge suberb southern telescope (VLT) we don't join (they eat smelly sausages don't you know).

So we join with the Americans (hope to teach them cricket) and the Candians (is it still in the Empire) to build the Gemini telescopes in Hawaii and Chile.

Then we decide to join ESO anyway in the meantime.

Then we drop out of Geminin.

Then we re-join Gemini.

Anybody wonder why he first thing any British scientist does after getting their PhD is to head to America?

[evilbobthebob]

re: its' a farce

Off to America then!

[Anonymous Coward]

Controlled landing

Shooting it down would make controlling how it re-enters the Earths orbit alot more predictable. Probably some milatary Health and Safty directive from HR controlling the shots(sic).

Shame it cant shoot itself or take a cyanide capsule, or can it ;0.