UK pulls funding from Jodrell Bank's radio telescope network

UKRI plans to withdraw support for the e-Merlin network in 2028, threatening observations at Jodrell Bank and roughly 800 jobs across UK science.

UK Research and Innovation says it will withdraw funding for the e-Merlin radio astronomy network, hubbed at Jodrell Bank Observatory, when the current agreement ends in March 2028. Unless other funding is found, observations at the site, home to the Grade I-listed Lovell telescope, would end completely. The withdrawal threatens 28 jobs at the observatory and affects nearly 3,000 researchers who use the facility.

The cut is part of a broader retrenchment. The Science and Technology Facilities Council, which needs substantial savings due to rising electricity, staff costs and exchange rates, is trimming dozens of facilities and projects, with about 800 expected job losses. The UK faces a 20% cut to its participation in the Rubin Observatory in Chile, a 45% cut to the Next-Generation Transit Survey, a full cut to future Extremely Large Telescope instruments, and withdrawal from the Event Horizon Telescope. UKRI's annual budget is nearly £10bn.

Open scientific infrastructure is part of the knowledge commons: instruments built with public money that generate data used freely by researchers worldwide. Shutting a world-leading network shrinks that shared capacity, and rebuilding lost expertise and hardware is far slower than cutting it. Astronomers including Catherine Heymans and Brian Cox have criticized the decision.

Associate director Simon Garrington intends to challenge the withdrawal and hopes uses like satellite and space-debris tracking might attract alternative funding. STFC describes the move as an evidence-based prioritisation. Whether replacement funding emerges before 2028 is the open question.

Source: Guardian