A speaker from the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC) will talk about the instruments currently being designed and built for both space based and ground based observatories. This will include instruments like LISA, a gravitational wave observatory being built by the European Space Agency (ESA) due for launch in the mid 2030s, and the largest telescope ever built, the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) currently under construction in Chile

A speaker from RAL Space will talk about major developments on space payloads for UK, European and other international missions. This could include missions like ARIEL, Sentinel, SpeQtre, EarthCARE and others. RAL Space carries out world-class science research and technology development with significant involvement in more than 210 instruments on missions to date.

THE UK ATC and RAL Space are National Labs within STFC which develop the instruments and facilities for ground breaking research in Physics and Astronomy. We do the engineering required to build and maintain these facilities so scientists can concentrate on the research.

Attendees will learn:
1. The position of the UK’s National Labs (RAL Space and UK ATC) as leading international centres for the design and build of instruments for Astronomy and Space Science
2. The LISA Gravitational Wave Observatory and the advanced technology development required to detect ripples in the fabric of spacetime
3. The construction of the world’s largest telescope in Chile and the instruments being designed for first light detection
4. Development work on Ariel, a major upcoming ESA mission that will study the formation and evolution of exoplanets and planetary systems.
5. How RAL Space’s broad engineering capabilities are being applied to deliver the next generation in space instruments and payloads.