During UK National Astronomy Week, 1-9 February, we’re taking a look at just some of the incredible work our researchers are doing in the fields of astronomy, cosmology and advanced instrumentation.
Did you know that our staff are at the forefront of space research? Our astronomers, cosmologists, and physicists include some of the most cited researchers in the world.
When they're not working together in the Ogden Centre for Fundamental Physics, they're taking the lead on global efforts to explore and understand the cosmos. We're even hosting the National Astronomy Meeting 2025, which will bring leading scientists from the UK and around the world together to share their research this July.
This National Astronomy Week, we celebrate all their fascinating work in space research.
Our Centre for Extragalactic Astronomy (CEA) is a hub for researchers looking into the formation and evolution of stars, galaxies, black holes and large-scale structures in the Universe.
Our physicists are key partners in the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid space telescope, which is on a six-year mission to map the dark Universe. In October, they released images that provide the first chunk of the map — a huge mosaic of more than 200,000 megapixels, containing 14 million galaxies.
Our researchers also led an international team which used the James Webb Space Telescope to find evidence of bar formation in galaxies when the Universe was only a few billion years old. They were part of the Superpressure Balloon-borne Imaging Telescope (SuperBIT) project, where a helium balloon the size of a football stadium was flown to the edge of space.
And in January, they announced the discovery of over 40 previously unknown stars.
What were the first objects in the Universe? How do galaxies form? What is the fate of the Universe?
These are some of the questions our Institute for Computational Cosmology (ICC) looks to answer. The ICC is a leader in research into the origin and evolution of the Universe, partnering with international organisations like NASA to get insights into the Universe's past.
In 2023 the ICC became the home for the Cosmology Machine 8 (COSMA 8), which has the power and memory of 17,000 home personal computers.
In November they announced that using supercomputer simulations from COSMA 8, they had discovered the origins of Mars' moons: an asteroid passing near Mars could have been pulled apart by the planet's gravity, with the resulting rock fragments strewn into a range of orbits.
In the same month, they were part of an international team that used the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to map how nearly six million galaxies cluster across 11 billion years of time.
Our researchers don't just use the machines they need to observe the universe — they also build them.
Members of our Centre for Advanced Instrumentation (CfAI) helped to develop and engineer the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), NASA’s replacement for the Hubble Space Telescope and is the largest, most powerful space telescope ever built. Its first image — of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 — was the deepest and sharpest infrared image of the distant Universe to date.
The CfAI is also involved in developing the 39m diameter Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). When built, this telescope will be the largest optical telescope ever constructed and will allow astronomers to see further into space than ever before.
Plus, since 2021 a CfAI team has been working with a group led by Northumbria University to develop a new laser-based system of satellite communications.
In November, we launched the Durham University Space Research Centre (SPARC), a £5m
Project that will help develop North East England’s growing space industry and will allow our researchers to make even more of an impact in space research.
We also look forward to seeing alumna Rosemary Coogan embark on her career as an astronaut. In April, she graduated from a year-long training course with the European Space Agency (ESA).
Watch this space for more fascinating discoveries!
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