UK Participation in the Pre-production Phase of the Cherenkov Telescope Array 2015-2017

Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.

The CTA project will have an impact on a wide range of scientific questions, from the nature of gravity to how supernovae accelerate particles and how active galaxies work. In doing so, it will use new and innovative methodologies, combining techniques from both astronomy and particle physics. In the process, many highly-skilled researchers will be trained.

UK industry stands to gain both from knowledge transfer and by way of contracts for producing electronics, camera housings, mirrors and structural elements. Much of this work will be undertaken in areas of economic deprivation (e.g. North East England, North Wales) thereby contributing to regeneration and economic development. Initial development work will take place over the next 2 years, with contracts likely being placed in the following 2-3 years.

The atmosphere is an important element of our detectors, and our Monte Carlo simulations already use data from the British Atmospheric Data Centre. Wherever the telescopes are sited, it is likely to be in an area short of detailed weather data for input to climate models. CTA's weather data are therefore likely to be useful to atmospheric modellers.

The public awareness and understanding of science will be enhanced by CTA. Our scientific research covers topics of considerable interest to the public, including black holes, supernova explosions and dark matter. We have already had considerable engagement with the public through events such as Stargazing Live and the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition, as well as giving many talks to local interest groups (Women's Institute, astronomical societies etc.) and schools. These activities will be continued and enhanced during the next few years as CTA matures as an observatory.

Early stage researchers will gain a wide range of skills from working on CTA, in areas such as programming, electronics, modelling of complex systems, image analysis etc. In addition, they will gain the 'soft skills' which come from working with people from a wide range of cultural backgrounds in the international CTA Consortium. These skills will fit them for non-academic professions. For example, recent Ph.D. graduates who have worked in CTA have already gone on to careers in teaching and software engineering and we expect many more skilled people to move into non-academic careers over the 30 year lifetime of CTA.