Joint Astronomy Centre
Although the public announcement does not explicitly state this, continuation of the JCMT beyond 2012 is envisaged and is contingent, inter alia, on the astronomical performance of the SCUBA-2 instrument. The UKIRT decision is a profound disappointment for everyone associated with the observatory. They are working with STFC to define the timescale and the implementation details, and they are also looking at alternative modes of operation. They emphasise that no decision has yet been taken to close the facility.
The UKIRT decision is a profound disappointment for everyone associated with the observatory. We are working with STFC to define the timescale and the implementation details, and we are also looking at alternative modes of operation. We emphasise that no decision has yet been taken to close the facility. With a diameter of 15m the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) is the largest astronomical telescope in the world designed specifically to operate in the submillimeter wavelength region of the spectrum. The JCMT is used to study our Solar System, interstellar dust and gas, and distant galaxies. It is situated close to the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, at an altitude of 4092m.
For more information, please visit http://www.jach.hawaii.edu