Jodrell Bank Observatory facing closure after major funder cuts support
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- UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) announced on Monday it will withdraw funding for the e-Merlin network — the UK's national radio astronomy facility at Jodrell Bank — when the current agreement lapses in March 2028.
- Jodrell Bank Observatory faces the end of all observations unless alternative funding is found, threatening 28 jobs and affecting nearly 3,000 researchers who work with the facility.
- Prof Catherine Heymans, Scotland's astronomer royal, called the move "devastating" and a blow to UK astronomy, noting Jodrell has delivered "spectacular discovery science for decades."
- Prof Simon Garrington, associate director of the observatory, told BBC News that staff were "devastated" by the decision.
- The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), funded by UKRI's nearly £10bn annual budget, said it must make severe cuts to meet cost overruns and rising projected costs.
- An STFC spokesperson defended the withdrawal as the result of a "rigorous prioritisation process" redirecting investment toward next-generation radio astronomy facilities.
- Jodrell Bank hosts the Grade I-listed Lovell telescope and supports research on galaxies, black holes, star formation, exoplanets, and the afterglow of the big bang.
Why it matters: The defunding strips the UK of its national radio astronomy facility and endangers 28 on-site jobs plus roughly 3,000 researchers who depend on it — and it comes not from austerity but from STFC's own prioritization within UKRI's £10bn budget, meaning UK astronomy is being outranked, not starved.
