The
Science and Technology Facilities Council is a
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
government body that carries out civil research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including
particle physicsParticle physics is a branch of physics that studies the elementary constituents of matter and radiation, and the interactions between them. It is also called high energy physics, because many elementary particles do not occur under normal circumstances in nature, but can be created and detected...
,
nuclear physicsNuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei.The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power and nuclear weapons, but the research has provided wider applications, including those in medicine , materials...
,
space scienceSpace science is an all-encompassing term that describes all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere". Originally, all of these fields were considered part of astronomy...
and astronomy (both ground-based and space-based).
It was formed in 2007 from the merger of the
Particle Physics and Astronomy Research CouncilThe Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council was one of a number of Research Councils in the United Kingdom. It directed, coordinated and funded research in particle physics and astronomy for the people of the UK...
(PPARC) with the
Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research CouncilsThe Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils was a UK government body that carried out civil research in science and engineering. On 1 April 2007 it merged with PPARC to form the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
(CCLRC).
The Science and Technology Facilities Council is one of Europe's largest multidisciplinary research organisations supporting scientists and engineers world-wide.
The
Science and Technology Facilities Council is a
UKThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
government body that carries out civil research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including
particle physicsParticle physics is a branch of physics that studies the elementary constituents of matter and radiation, and the interactions between them. It is also called high energy physics, because many elementary particles do not occur under normal circumstances in nature, but can be created and detected...
,
nuclear physicsNuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei.The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power and nuclear weapons, but the research has provided wider applications, including those in medicine , materials...
,
space scienceSpace science is an all-encompassing term that describes all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere". Originally, all of these fields were considered part of astronomy...
and astronomy (both ground-based and space-based).
History
It was formed in 2007 from the merger of the
Particle Physics and Astronomy Research CouncilThe Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council was one of a number of Research Councils in the United Kingdom. It directed, coordinated and funded research in particle physics and astronomy for the people of the UK...
(PPARC) with the
Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research CouncilsThe Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils was a UK government body that carried out civil research in science and engineering. On 1 April 2007 it merged with PPARC to form the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
(CCLRC).
Activities
The Science and Technology Facilities Council is one of Europe's largest multidisciplinary research organisations supporting scientists and engineers world-wide. It operates world-class, large scale research facilities (such as materials research, laser and space science and alternative energy exploration) and provides strategic advice to the UK government on their development. It also manages international research projects in support of a broad cross-section of the UK research community and directs, coordinates and funds research, education and training. It is a partner in the
British National Space CentreThe British National Space Centre is a British government body that coordinates civil space activities for the UK.-Structure:BNSC operates as a voluntary partnership of ten British government departments and agencies and research councils...
(BNSC) providing about 40% of the UK government's expenditure in space science and technology.
Aims
The activities of the council aim to enable scientists to answer what it believes are the 'big' questions such as:
- Why is there a Universe?
- How did galaxies form?
- Was there ever life on Mars?
- How do planetary systems evolve?
- How are the chemical elements created?
- How does our climate work?
- How can we create new materials to store energy?
- How can we meet mankind’s need for abundant clean energy?
- How can we design smart materials?
- How do cells work?
- How do degenerative diseases develop?
- How can we design better treatments for cancer?
Funding crisis
In late 2007, it was revealed that there was a massive hole in the STFC budget. It is expected that there are likely to be ≈25% funding cuts in astronomy grants. In addition STFC is undertaking other cost saving measures by cutting down on various facilities, for instance
GeminiThe Gemini Observatory is an astronomical observatory consisting of two telescopes at different sites. The Northern Operations Center is located in Hilo, Hawaii, and the Southern Operations Center is in La Serena, Chile. The Gemini telescopes were built and are operated by a consortium consisting...
south. The effect of cuts on STFC-funded research fellowships is yet to be decided.
The UK astronomy, particle-physics and nuclear-physics communities are extremely concerned about the funding cuts. Professor Roger Davis said "I don't think the PPARC Council would have gone along with the merger if it had realised this would be the outcome".
Jodrell Bank
This was a popular media issue at the time, resulting in many errors and false claims by the media. The most famous of these was the supposed proposal by the STFC to close the Jodrell Bank Observatory. This was not a genuine proposal, simply a misunderstanding, possibly leading from an over simplification. The real project in question was that of e-MERLIN based at JBO, this was subsequently raised to a higher priority and hence survived the spending review. There are more details in the STFC press release
"STFC response to article in The Times".
The closure and cancellation of many of these proposed projects was not only a result of the ≈£80m shortfall in the STFC's budget, but also a consequence of the Council's decision to concentrate on its strengths and try to reduce activity in areas in which it was not a world leader.
Facilities
It helps operate / provide access for UK and international scientists to the following large-scale facilities:
- Central Laser Facility (CLF) at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
;
- CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , , is the world's largest particle physics laboratory, situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border, established in 1954...
;
- The space science and space exploration programmes of ESA;
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility
The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility is a joint research facility supported by 19 countries situated in Grenoble, France. The ESRF operates the most powerful synchrotron radiation source in Europe, and is generally considered to be a world leading research facility...
(ESRF);
- Institut Laue-Langevin
The Institut Laue-Langevin, or ILL, is an internationally-financed scientific facility, situated in Grenoble, France. It is one of the world centres for research using neutrons...
(ILL);
- Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes
The Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes or ING operates the William Herschel Telescope, Isaac Newton Telescope and Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope optical telescopes for the Science and Technology Facilities Council , the NWO and the IAC...
(ING), La Palma;
- ISIS pulsed neutron and muon source
ISIS is a pulsed neutron and muon source. It is situated at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom and is part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
at the Rutherford Appleton LaboratoryThe Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
;
- Joint Astronomy Centre
The Joint Astronomy Centre operates British, Canadian and Dutch telescopes at Mauna Kea Observatory, and provides support for other telescopes and public outreach activities...
(JAC), Hawaii;
- Diamond Light Source
Diamond Light Source is a synchrotron research facility in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom. It produced its first user beam towards the end of January 2007...
, being commissioned on the Rutherford Appleton site. Partly funded by the Wellcome TrustThe Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
;
- UK Astronomy Technology Centre
The UK Astronomy Technology Centre is based at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh, Scotland and is part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council....
, Edinburgh;
- Microelectronics Support Centre (MSC) at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
;
- Daresbury Laboratory
Daresbury Laboratory or Daresbury Nuclear Physics Laboratory is a scientific research laboratory near Daresbury in Cheshire, England, which began operations in 1962 and was officially opened on 16 June 1967 as the Daresbury Nuclear Physics Laboratory by the then Prime Minister of United Kingdom,...
in Cheshire which has a number of research facilities.
Locations
It employs staff at many locations including:
- Its Head Office is at Polaris House, Swindon
Swindon is a large town and unitary borough authority in the ceremonial county of Wiltshire in south west England. It is midway between Bristol, west, and Reading, east. London is east....
, WiltshireWiltshire is a ceremonial county in the south west of England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers 3,485 km²...
. This is nect to the Great Western Main LineThe Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in Great Britain that runs westwards from London Paddington station to the west of England and South Wales. The core Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington to Temple Meads station in Bristol...
and Swindon CollegeSwindon College is a higher education college in Swindon, England. Its campus is at North Star, just outside the town centre. The college has HNC/Ds and Foundation Degrees, through to BA courses and a postgraduate programme.- External links :**...
;
- Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory is one of the national scientific research laboratories in the UK operated by the Science and Technology Facilities Council . It is located on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus at Chilton near Didcot in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom...
, at the Harwell Science and Innovation CampusThe Harwell Science and Innovation Campus is a science and technology campus near the villages of Harwell and Chilton, Oxfordshire, England. The site is about south of Oxford...
in OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
, incorporating the ISIS neutron sourceISIS is a pulsed neutron and muon source. It is situated at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom and is part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
;
- Daresbury Laboratory
Daresbury Laboratory or Daresbury Nuclear Physics Laboratory is a scientific research laboratory near Daresbury in Cheshire, England, which began operations in 1962 and was officially opened on 16 June 1967 as the Daresbury Nuclear Physics Laboratory by the then Prime Minister of United Kingdom,...
at the Daresbury Science and Innovation Campus in CheshireCheshire ; also known, archaically, as the County of Chester) is a ceremonial county in North West England. The traditional county town is the city of Chester, although Cheshire's largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Widnes, Runcorn, Macclesfield,...
;
- Chilbolton Observatory
The Chilbolton Observatory is a facility for atmospheric and radio research located on the edge of the village of Chilbolton near Stockbridge in Hampshire, England...
, near StockbridgeStockbridge is a village of a little under 600 people in Hampshire, England. It is on the River Test, in the Test Valley district and renowned for trout fishing. The A30 road goes through the town, which once carried most of the traffic from London to the South West...
in HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
;
- The UK Astronomy Technology Centre
The UK Astronomy Technology Centre is based at the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh, Scotland and is part of the Science and Technology Facilities Council....
in EdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland. It is the second largest Scottish city, after Glasgow, and the seventh-most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas....
;
- The Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes
The Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes or ING operates the William Herschel Telescope, Isaac Newton Telescope and Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope optical telescopes for the Science and Technology Facilities Council , the NWO and the IAC...
, La Palma;
- Joint Astronomy Centre
The Joint Astronomy Centre operates British, Canadian and Dutch telescopes at Mauna Kea Observatory, and provides support for other telescopes and public outreach activities...
, Hawaii.
Knowledge exchange obligations
STFC is active in its responsibility for knowledge exchange from government funded civil science into UKPLC. As such, many technologies are licensed to UK companies and spin-out companies created including:
However knowledge exchange activities are not purely limited to commercialization of technologies, but also cover a wider range of activities which aim to transfer expertise into the wider economy.
See also
- Cosener's House
The Cosener's House is on an island in the River Thames within the original grounds of Abingdon Abbey, located near the centre of the town of Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England. It is run as a conference centre with accommodation by the Science and Technology Facilities Council...
, a conference centre owned by STFC in AbingdonAbingdon is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire in Southern England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places which claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town...
- STFC - could be confused with Swindon Town F.C.
Swindon Town Football Club is an English football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, who currently play in League One. The club's home ground is the County Ground, which has an all-seated capacity of 15,728....
External links
Video clips