Mt. Stromlo Observatory [OP]: From Bush Observatory to the Nobel Prize

by Ragbir Bhathal, Ralph Sutherland, Harvey Butcher

This book tells the story of the Mt. Stromlo Observatory in Canberra which began life as a government department, later becoming an optical munitions factory producing gun sights and telescopes during the Second World War, before changing its focus to astrophysics – the new astronomy.

In the ensuing years programs were introduced to push the Observatory in new directions at the international frontiers of astronomy. The astronomers built new, better and larger telescopes to unravel the secrets of the universe. There were controversies, exciting new discoveries and new explanations of phenomena that had been discovered. The Observatory and its researchers have contributed to determining how old the universe is, participated in the largest survey of galaxies in the universe, and helped to show us that the universal expansion is accelerating – research that led to Brian Schmidt and his international team being awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize for physics.

These and other major discoveries are detailed in this fascinating book about one of the great observatories in the world.

Key
* Mt Stromlo is an important part of the history of Canberra, an Australian icon, and one of the great observatories of the world
* Written by eminent members of the Mt. Stromlo Observatory team
* Released to coincide with Canberra’s centenary celebrations
* Illustrated with historical documents and wonderful and exciting images of the universe we live in
* Includes Brian Schmidt’s Nobel lecture

344 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2014

Reviews

[Kevin Orrman-Rossiter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Penny Sackett was the first female to become the Director of a major astronomical institution in Australia. She arrived at Mt Stromlo with a mission. She had inherited a very strong research institution from the previous Director, Jeremy Mould. ‘The scientists (including future Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt) were absolutely first-rate….and so really it was a matter of trying to invigorate that with some younger blood as well and watch the tradition continue.’ About six months into Sackett’s directorship a bushfire destroys the Observatory.

This book neither starts nor ends with this catastrophic event. Instead it starts at the beginning; the 1905 idea of unknown research student Geoffrey Duffield to establish a solar observatory in Australia. It finishes in the present, with the start of Matthew Colless’ tenure as Director in January 2013. In between is a rich and dense history of great science and scientists, political help and hindrance, transformation from Federal Observatory to headquarters of the Australian National University’s Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics and home to the Advanced Technology Instrumentation Centre - a microcosm of the Australian nation’s history.

The authors’ intention is to tell the story of the Mt Stromlo observatory in Canberra and how it fulfilled Duffield’s grand vision in setting up the observatory: ‘It is my earnest desire that we should take our place among the great observatories of the world.’ This book is a successful demonstration that Mt Stromlo observatory fulfilled Geoffrey Duffield’s aim.

The book itself builds on an earlier (2003) history of Mt Stromlo, written by Tom Frame and Don Faulkner. Stromlo: an Australian observatory was a commissioned history highlighting the contribution Mount Stromlo has made to our understanding of the universe. The timing means that this unfortunately misses out on the Sackett rejuvenation of Mt Stromlo and events such as the 2006 joining and contribution to the Giant Magellan Telescope project and the award of the 2011 Nobel prize to Brian Schmidt.

The history that Bhathal, Sutherland and Butcher present is rich in detail and historical accuracy. This is not all that surprising as the authors are all from astronomy and astrophysics backgrounds. Harvey Butcher was, amongst other notable appointments, the 9th Director of Mt Stromlo from 2007 to 2013 and Ralph Sutherland has been a Fellow there since 1996. Ragbir Bhathal is not only an astrophysicist, he also is an award winning author of 15 books, eight of them on astronomy including two on aboriginal astronomy.

I found the early history of the observatory particularly fascinating and well told. From the 1907 resolution of the International Union for Cooperation in Solar research in support of Duffield’s advocacy for a solar observatory in Australia to his appointment as the first Director in 1924 is a great insight into the politics and psyche of post-Federation Australia - as well as a marvelous tale of tenacity and resilience.

The other part of the book I really was captivated by was the early 1980s through to the early 1990s. During which the 5th Director, Donald Mathewson, “embarked on a very ambitious international project to take Australia into space astronomy” to “drag Australia kicking and screaming into the space age.” Followed by the ambitious instrumentalist push by the next Director, Alex Rodgers, including refurbishing the Great Melbourne Telescope for the MACHO project. Which was a search for the large amounts of unseen matter, dark matter, known to exist in the outer parts of the Milky Way Galaxy. Seemingly ambitious until you realise that Australia was the third nation in the world (after the Soviet Union and the USA) to launch a satellite into space.

At times reading the book I wished to know more about some incident or person and wished the authors had expanded their narrative to include that extra part. However, I do acknowledge this not easily done without bogging a text down in tangential asides and detail. I think the authors have hit the right balance of detail and story. At the same time providing useful references and appendices to explore the stories further. Well worth the read and a notable addition to the history of science in Australia.

This review was first published here: http://dragonlaughing.tumblr.com/post...