Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire
- Details
Scientific field: Astronomy
Star rating: **
Summary description:
An iconic feature of the Cheshire landscape, Jodrell Bank consists of a clutch of radio telescopes, its star attraction being the impressive Lovell Telescope, which is the third largest steerable radio telescope in the world. Alongside the Lovell Telescope are a visitor centre and arboretum. Over the past 60 years or so, Jodrell Bank has been involved in ground-breaking research on such phenomena as quasars (highly energetic and distant galactic nuclei), pulsars (rapidly rotating neutron stars), and meteors (shooting stars), and was also heavily involved with the tracking of space probes and satellites at the start of the Space Age in the 1950s and 1960s.
Location:
The observatory is located some 20 miles south of Manchester, just off the A535, about 3 miles to the north east of the town of Holmes Chapel.
Getting there:
Visitors driving from Manchester should follow the A34 through Wilmslow, turning right on to the A535 just before Alderley Edge Railway station. The A535 is signposted Chelford and Holmes Chapel. Visitors arriving along the M6 should leave the motorway at Junction 18, take the A54 into Holmes Chapel, and then the A535 (signposted Chelford). There is no public transport to within walking distance of the observatory. The closest railway station is Goostrey which is on the Manchester-Crewe line. The site’s postcode (for SatNav navigation) is SK11 9DW.
Background:
Jodrell Bank was established in 1945 by Sir Bernard Lovell, originally for the investigation of cosmic rays. Some early telescopes constructed at the site were involved in observing ionisation of Earth’s atmosphere by meteor showers, in the first detection of an extragalactic radio source (from the Andromeda galaxy) and in the discovery of radio waves coming from what is now known as Tycho’s supernova. The Lovell Telescope became operational in mid-1957, just before the launch of Sputnik-1, the world’s first artificial satellite; it turned out to be the only instrument in the world capable of tracking Sputnik’s booster rocket. In the following years, it was used to track, receive data from, and send commands to a variety of space probes. Other activities have included using radar to measure the distance to the Moon and Venus, observations of quasars and pulsars (including the first pulsar in a globular cluster), 
and observations of gravitational lensing (the bending of light coming from distant galaxies by intervening concentrations of matter). The telescope has also been used for SETI (the search for extraterrestrial intelligence).
Jodrell Bank’s current visitor centre, called the Discovery Centre, opened in April 2011. It includes exhibits explaining the work carried out there and a film outlining the history of the site. Outside the visitor centre, a path (not a whole circle) can be walked around the Lovell Telescope. Along it are some information boards explaining how the telescope works. As well as being open to the public every day, the Discovery Centre organises various public outreach events, including lectures and "ask an astronomer" sessions.
Opening hours and charges:
The Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre is open every day from 10 am to 5 pm. Admission charges during peak periods (1 May to 4 Nov, plus Easter holiday period and February half-term) are £6.50 adult, £4.50 child, with reductions for families, groups, senior citizens and students. During non-peak periods, charges are £5.50 adult, £4.00 child, with similar reductions for families etc. Mobile phones must be switched off while on site as they interfere with radio observations.
Website: http://www.jodrellbank.net/
Related sites (partial list at present):
Armagh Observatory and Planetarium, Northern Ireland
Copernicus Museum, Frombork, Poland
Jantar Mantar Observatory, Jaipur, India
Kepler Museum, Weil der Stadt, Germany
Herschel Museum of Astronomy, Bath, England
Museo Galileo, Florence, Italy
Mount John Observatory, South Island, New Zealand
Mount Wilson Observatory, California, USA
Palomar Observatory, California, USA
Parkes Radio Telescope, New South Wales, Australia
Reber Radio Telescope, West Virginia, USA
Royal Observatory, Greenwich, England
Tycho Brahe Museum, Ven, Sweden