How UK Research Benefits Industry, Education and Society
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A STRONOMY M EANS B USINESS background is transparent How UK research benefits Advancing Astronomy and Geophysics industry, education and society P Contents 3 Introduction: from 16 Data science goes to the markets ASTRONOMY the President of the Industry focus: Winton Capital Management Ltd MEANS BUSINESS RAS 17 Skills for future growth Prof. Martin Barstow This booklet was produced by the Astronomy draws young Royal Astronomical Society introduces this booklet www.ras.org.uk people into technical For more information, contact: Robert Massey, 4 The race for the careers Deputy Executive Director, [email protected] Written by: Sue Bowler, [email protected] space industry 18 Cornwall Designed by: Paul Johnson, www.higgs-boson.com Space is a growth industry reaches out to Printed by: Pureprint Group worldwide and in the UK © RAS February 2016 space Image credits: p1 ESO 6 Seeing the unseeable Industry focus: p3 University of Leicester (M Barstow). Goonhilly Earth p4,5 Arianespace (Ariane 5). ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM Detectors for medicine, power, aeronautics and security (67P). Bionerd (americium). ESA (BepiColombo). Station p6,7 M Häggström (retina). T Efthimiadis 8 Europe’s billion-star mapper (Antikythera Mechanism). ESA/Herschel/PACS/ SPIRE/HOBYS Key Programme consortium (Mon R2). Space telescope Gaia is driving innovative IT 19 Towards p8,9 ESA/Gaia (Milky Way). gaia.ac.uk (data processing centre). T Kovats (artwork). AirbusDS/ a scientifically ESA/CNES (V Lonnon). ESA–D Ducros (Gaia). 10 Together we are strong literate society p10,11 ESO/L Calçada/N Risinger skysurvey.org European collaboration helps UK research lead the world (E-ELT). Durham University (zebrafish heart). Astronomy inspires all ages, Northrop Grumman (JWST). NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/C Gunn (MIRI team). 12 Big data: astrophysics gets ahead of the game bringing learning, research p12,13 SKA Organisation (SKA-1). OpenStreetMap and regeneration contributors (earthquake map). University of Experience with big data brings applications for society Leicester (DiRAC-2). EAGLE Project (simulation). p14 NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute (Pluto). 14 Chips with everything: e2v (K Attwood). Astrium (chips). p15 G Fildes (Kielder Observatory). R Darn e2v’s success stories (S Hugenholtz). p16 NASA, ESA, A Fruchter (STScI), and the ERO team Industry focus: e2v (STScI + ST-ECF). Technologies plc p17 ESA/NASA (T Peake). Dr R Smith, Liverpool John Moores University (Liverpool Telescope). UK Space Agency/M Alexander (children). 15 Stretching the tourist p18 I Jones, CEO GES Ltd (landscape). p19 R Holme (garden). N Boyle (Glastonbury). season – with astronomy Cover: The star cluster NGC 6604 is shown (top Tourism for astronomy right) in this image taken by the Wide Field Imager attached to the 2.2 m MPG/ESO telescope at the La benefits small rural Silla Observatory in Chile. businesses, year-round Introduction: from the President of the Royal Astronomical Society It is a pleasure to introduce this overview of Array and the European Extremely Large developments in business, industry and society Telescope, two innovative next-generation that have arisen from research in astronomy observatories that will lead the world. and astrophysics. So much of the technology That investment, in turn, will bring we rely on in our day-to-day lives sprang from business for UK companies, give UK or was developed as part of fundamental, blue- industry a headstart in the applications skies research: sensors for security scanning that will arise from these new research and medicine, wi-fi connections, complex areas, and inspire a new generation software for big data, imaging systems and of young people to take up careers in the ubiquitous smartphones using satellite science and engineering. navigation, compact cameras and more. This booklet is based on returns to the Astronomers study the distant universe 2014 Research Excellence Framework. It using the light that stars and galaxies emit; represents a snapshot of research activity in that light might be ultraviolet or infrared universities with a wider impact. This is not radiation, or it might be radio waves, but the only significant work undertaken by the astronomers squeeze every last bit of UK astronomy community, and these information from it. That expertise in making fields will have already developed the most of information translates to down-to- by the time you read this. But the Earth applications where getting the biggest summary it provides paints a bang for the buck helps industry keep costs picture of a healthy research down and effectiveness up, driving economic culture with a keen eye for growth for the UK. how to put ideas to work. We are seeing the benefits from government investment in universities, research centres Prof. Martin Barstow THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY REPRESENTS AStrONOMERS, PLANETARY SCIENTISTS, SOLAR– such as the Harwell Campus and world- President of the RAS TErrEStrIAL PHYSICISTS AND SOLID-EArtH class facilities such as the Square Kilometre 2014–16 GEOPHYSICISTS. OUR FELLOWS WORK ON ALL ASPECTS OF RESEARCH, EDUCATION, OUtrEACH AND SCHOLARSHIP. The race for the space industry Space is a growth SPACE FOR REACHING FURTHER industry worldwide. GROWTH WITH ESA We rely on space technology: UK research means satellites provide environmental monitoring and a host of navigation that UK industry is and timing services that we have in a prime position come to take for granted. Space is the place to go for growth: to win shares in that spacecraft and satellite technology market. is increasingly a part of our lives and UK industry can take a leading role, thanks to UK research. Universities such as Leicester and University College London provide Space missions demand low- expertise and academic leadership. mass, high-reliability, high- The UK space industry is performance instruments that already worth £11.8 billion and is function in extreme environments. growing at 8.6% year-on-year on Development of innovative average. The UK Space Agency technologies for European Space estimates that there are 37 000 Agency contracts boosts UK people employed directly in the industrial capabilities. Researchers space industry, with 115 000 jobs at the Open University (OU) have associated with this sector in all. developed analytical instruments The sustained growth, export for solar system exploration success and new businesses in the for several ESA missions, most UK space sector demonstrate that recently the successful Rosetta we are well on our way to the target comet-chasing mission. The of 10% of the global space market OU-led spectrometer PTOLEMY by 2030. on the Philae lander discovered organic molecules on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (pictured above). OU and Leicester researchers built sophisticated but small mass spectrometers for the Beagle 2 Mars lander; they are now applying that knowledge to new instruments ▶ Blast off. The European Space Agency has delivered cutting- to explore Mars and the Moon, in edge science and technology collaboration with RAL Space and for 50 years, including this companies including AirbusDS, Ariane 5 rocket launching the Fluid Gravity Engineering and Herschel–Planck satellite in 2009. Magna Parva (see right). 4 INDUSTRY FOCUS POWER FOR TESTING MAGNA PARVA: MARS, SPACE TEAMWORK MERCURY AND MEDICINE Space research and any space industry requires teams of specialists working together on Magna Parva is a space complex problems in demanding engineering consultancy projects where failure is not that has worked with tolerated. UK researchers have researchers from the considerable experience in University of Leicester project management as principal and the Open University investigators; researchers at the to develop instruments Mullard Space Science Laboratory for exploring Mars and of University College London Mercury. The management have examined how complex and technical support technology projects succeed in the Magna Parva supplied to Spacecraft exploring the solar real world. They offer continuing Leicester researchers in the system usually use nuclear energy. professional development in development of instruments Researchers at the University project management, systems for ESA’s ExoMars mission of Leicester, in collaboration engineering and technology led to the company gaining with other UK and international management. Clients include the a contract with ESA for the partners, have identified an European Space Agency, General BepiColombo mission to Mercury. isotope of americium as a viable Electric, National Air Traffic The new income stream for the alternative to plutonium. They Services, Mahindra and Transport company produced seven extra developed a technique to extract it for London. Between 2008 and jobs – effectively doubling the size from radioactive waste, providing 2013, clients paid £2.4 million for of the company. Europe with an independent slice these services. OU researchers developed an of the wider international market, Ultra Electronics, a technology elegant solution to the problem where supply is dominated by company that employs 5000 of dust settling on solar panels Russia. people worldwide, sought of Mars landers and limiting Americium (pictured above) systems engineering training. mission power; with Magna Parva is also used for smoke alarms, “Through the adoption of best and Fluid Gravity Engineering in well-logging instruments for practice, senior management has they won a contract from ESA the hydrocarbons industry