UNews - David Naylor

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researchers secure support through Alberta’s Major Innovation Fund

caroline.zentner — Tue, 05 Sep 2023 17:13:11 +0000

From using robotic systems in health-care delivery and building on quantum technologies to adapting highly sensitive space instruments to space and defence applications, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researchers are involved in a host of projects receiving grants through Alberta’s Major Innovation Fund.

The Honourable Nate Glubish, Minister of Technology and Innovation, announced today an investment of $27.3 million into innovative research in Alberta’s post-secondary institutions. The funding is designed to accelerate research and commercialization in medical devices, electronic and mobile health, clean energy and space and defence technologies. The funding goes to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta (U of A) and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary (U of C) to lead four province-wide strategic initiatives. ULethbridge and Athabasca ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ are partners in the projects.

“Supporting fundamental research and initiatives that commercialize new technologies is critical to strengthening and diversifying the Alberta economy,” says Dr. Dena McMartin, ULethbridge vice-president (research). “This investment will encourage new and traditional sectors to grow, improving the economic prospects and quality of life for all Albertans.”

Led by the U of C under the Space and Defence Technologies theme, Drs. David Naylor and Locke Spencer, professors in the Department of Physics & Astronomy, will be involved in migrating the technologies developed by the Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG) at ULethbridge. Advances made by the AIG resulted in the most sensitive instruments to be deployed in space.

“The announcement of the Major Innovation Fund for the Space and Defence Technologies theme is reflective of our increasingly more complex world,” says Naylor. “The MIF funding will allow us to migrate the technologies in which we are recognized as world leaders and develop them to meet the broader needs of the space and defence community.”

Another project led by the U of C is centred on quantum technology innovations and ULethbridge’s Dr. Saurya Das, a professor in the physics and astronomy department, is one of nine principal investigators.

“The second quantum revolution is on, which will change the way one thinks of computers and computation and will revolutionize communication and commerce,” he says. “Alberta researchers are key players in this, and their research will help diversify Alberta’s economy, create jobs, develop made-in-Alberta quantum technology, and make it accessible to end users in Alberta and beyond. ULethbridge researchers have been working on problems in Quantum Computation and Quantum Sensing and have made significant contributions to the project. In the process, they have published papers in top-rated international journals and trained students and postdocs.”

Dr. Matthew Tata, a professor at the Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, is the ULethbridge lead for a U of A-led project. A-MEDICO is a pan-Alberta network of researchers, industry and health-care professionals working on medical technologies for broad applications, especially for underserved populations. Tata was previously involved in a MIF project that focused on medical robotics, image-guided surgery and machine intelligence-based solutions for medicine.

“In both of these projects, my team is focused on applying state-of-the-art machine learning techniques for audio processing,” says Tata. “We have been developing audio AI for human-robot interaction in health care and industrial scenarios.”

Canadian Space Agency grant to help develop next generation of space scientists

caroline.zentner — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 19:23:50 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge has received a $100,000 grant from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) to train the next generation of space scientists in the development of a cryogenic post-dispersed polarizing Fourier transform spectrometer (PDPFTS). ULethbridge is one of 21 post-secondary institutions in the country to receive a grant through the CSA’s Flights and Fieldwork for the Advancement of Science and Technology (FAST) funding initiative.

The grants support the development of space technology by providing students and young researchers with hands-on experience. Projects must simulate a realistic space environment.

“We are very pleased to receive this grant,” says Dr. David Naylor, physics and astronomy professor and head of the Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG) at ULethbridge. “The next generation of far-infrared (FIR) space astronomy missions will employ detectors whose sensitivity is over two orders of magnitude higher than any previously flown. To exploit this exquisite sensitivity requires a fundamentally different type of instrument architecture.”

The main objectives of this project are to develop the world’s first cryogenic PDPFTS and to investigate the challenges associated with this concept under realistic space conditions. This new type of spectrometer has been identified by the world’s leading space agencies (ESA, JAXA, NASA) as a necessary next step to explore both galaxy evolution in the farthest reaches of our universe and star and planet formation in our own galaxy.

“Simply put, in order to achieve the potential 100-fold increase in sensitivity provided by state-of-the-art detectors requires the instrument be characterized to a correspondingly greater degree,” says Naylor.

Issues that did not have to be considered on previous missions will become important and perhaps even dominant. These issues must first be identified before they can be mitigated.

The project builds on a lengthy heritage of Canadian participation in infrared space astronomy missions. It will lead to a greater understanding of the PDPFTS concept, which will serve to reduce future mission risk and cost. It will continue to train highly qualified personnel in high-tech fields associated with space-exploration missions.

“The exemplary training environment provided by our group — five former trainees currently work in the space sector including NASA, SRON and Space-X — together with the more than $2 million in external funding that has been attracted to ULethbridge in support of the PDPFTS concept were important considerations in the CSA’s decision,” he says. “The FAST grant will help us continue to train ULethbridge students for high-tech positions in space industries not only in Canada but around the world.”

Graduate student Alicia Anderson earns world renowned Gates Cambridge Scholarship to study at Trinity College

trevor.kenney — Thu, 28 Apr 2022 19:19:12 +0000

Alicia Anderson (BSc ’20) has always aimed high — her study of astrophysics can attest to that — and she’s now earned one of the highest honours in academia. Anderson has been awarded a Gates Cambridge Scholarship, which will see her study her PhD at Trinity College on the grounds of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Cambridge (United Kingdom) beginning this fall.

“It’s a major success,” says Dr. David Naylor, physics and astronomy professor, Board of Governors’ Research Chair and head of the Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG) at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. “This is about flat-out excellence. You basically have the best talent on the planet going after this award and she won it.”

Alicia Anderson, right, pictured with Dr. David Naylor, will head to Cambridge in October to work in the exoplanet research centre.

Established in 2000 with a $210-million gift from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support graduate students’ study, it is considered one of the most competitive and prestigious scholarships in the world. Since the first class in 2001, Gates Cambridge has awarded 2,081 scholarships to scholars from 111 countries who represent more than 600 universities globally, and more than 80 academic departments and all 31 colleges at Cambridge.

Anderson is one of 79 new Gates Cambridge Scholars from 30 countries, including just two other Canadians. Over the 22-year history of the award, just one other Canadian physicist has earned a Gates Cambridge Scholarship, while three others have studied astronomy.

“As a 17-year-old, when I first came to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, I hadn’t really planned on any of this,” says Anderson, who completed her bachelor of science with great distinction in 2020 and just recently successfully defended her master’s thesis. “You start by making connections with professors and I’ve been lucky to have really passionate professors teaching me undergraduate physics and inspiring me to join a research group and take it to the next level. I really owe it all to my department and all the professors who have taught me.”

Naylor and his colleagues recognized early Anderson’s potential. Once she turned her focus to space and the AIG group in her third year of studies, she flourished. Upon earning her undergraduate degree, she jumped at the chance to enrol as a master’s student and work on what promised to be the next great infrared space mission — the European Space Agency’s (ESA) SPICA, a far infrared space observatory scheduled to launch in 2030. Unfortunately, midway through her master’s work, ESA chose not to pursue SPICA and the global pandemic hit.

“It was tough for her because her entire thesis was under the umbrella of a pandemic,” says Naylor. “She wasn’t able to travel to conferences and make the connections you normally do as a graduate student. So, when I could see that SPICA was no longer an option, I promised we’d get her a position for her PhD.”

Like all Naylor’s graduate students, Anderson’s research has been generously supported by industrial partner Blue Sky Spectroscopy Inc. to the tune of $1.1 million, without which she would not have been able to take on her thesis project. With Blue Sky’s support, Naylor was able to send Anderson to Cambridge to work with one of his colleagues, professor Stafford Withington. As head of the Quantum Sensors Group, Withington is a world-leading physicist and one of the most respected scholars on campus. Anderson not only impressed Withington over the course of her six-week stay, she learned something about herself as well.

“I had this image of Cambridge in my mind where it was this place I could never fit into because I was used to such a small university,” she says. “But being there for six weeks, I felt right at home. It was a research lab, just like I’d worked at in Lethbridge for five years.”

When word got out that Anderson was seeking a PhD position, interested schools lined up. McGill, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia and others made substantial offers but with her eyes now wide open to the opportunities before her, she applied for the Gates Scholarship.

“When I interviewed with my supervisor, who had won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2019, he told me I was one of the best-prepared students he’d ever seen and that my background was the highest calibre of any of the applications this year. It just speaks to the training and the incredible projects I’d worked on with David and Blue Sky and how it had prepared me for this.”

Anderson will head to Cambridge in October to work in the exoplanet research centre where she will focus her attention on planets that exist outside our solar system but orbit around other stars within the Milky Way Galaxy.

“The newest technology in exoplanet astronomy will allow astronomers to observe Earth-like planets that are orbiting around stars like our sun. The ultimate goal is to identify potentially habitable exoplanets,” says Anderson, noting her supervisor just received a £10-million grant to answer what makes an exoplanet habitable. “Ground-based observatories, like the one I will work on in my PhD, will locate these exoplanets so that future missions can follow up and study them in more detail.”

For Naylor, who predicted two years ago Anderson would be following the footsteps of his most accomplished graduates, to see her destined for the Cambridge program is gratifying on many levels.

“Life is a series of lessons learned and our role as educators is to help students climb the knowledge ladder,” he says. “In my own case, I had a physics teacher at grammar school who had a major impact on my career path. Over the last 41 years at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, I have mentored dozens of students — seven are now professors, three hold research chairs, four others work at various space agencies (NASA Ames, JPL, SRON, Space-X), and another built the motor that operates the drill on NASA’s Insight lander that sits on the surface of Mars. While Alicia is the latest member of our family, and I will take great pride in seeing where she goes and visiting her while she’s at Trinity, I’m proud of them all.”

Novel U of L instrument design published in Review of Scientific Instruments

caroline.zentner — Tue, 13 Oct 2020 23:10:15 +0000

An innovative concept developed by the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG) was recently published in the prestigious Review of Scientific Instruments, a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Institute of Physics (AIP) now in its 90th year. Although published by the AIP, the Review of Scientific Instruments is unique in that it reports on novel instrumentation from all branches of science and, as a result, has a high acceptance threshold.

The paper, titled An angle-scanned cryogenic Fabry-Pérot interferometer for far-infrared astronomy, by Dr. Ian Veenendaal (BSc ’13, MSc ’16, PhD ’20) et al, presents a novel design for a Fabry-Pérot Interferometer (FPI). An FPI is a spectrometer that is able to obtain high-resolution spectral images of distant astronomical sources, allowing astrophysicists to look back in time to study the formation and evolution of galaxies.

Drs. David Naylor (right) and Ian Veenendaal collaborate in the AIG lab.

“Being published in the Review of Scientific Instruments speaks to the quality of Ian’s work in his doctoral thesis,” says Dr. David Naylor, Veenendaal’s supervisor and Tier 1 Board of Governors’ Research Chair in the Department of Physics & Astronomy. “This paper has already captured the interest of teams at the French national centre for scientific research and the Scripps Institute, demonstrating the broad potential of this new concept.”

Reviewers of the article highlighted the novelty of the instrument, which was tested in the AIG’s test facility cryostat to simulate the hostile environment that would be encountered in space.

Veenendaal developed his design with the Space Infrared Telescope for Cosmology and Astrophysics (SPICA) mission in mind. The telescope is a collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). SPICA is one of three candidates for ESA’s mission, with the final selection expected in 2021.

“Developing novel instrumentation is what we do in the AIG,” says Naylor. “There are numerous subject-specific instrumentation journals, but to be recommended as a feature article in the Review of Scientific Instruments speaks not only to the quality, but also to the breadth of interest in our work.”

Indeed, Veenendaal was offered a position in the Netherlands Institute for Space Research (SRON) a full year before he defended his thesis in recognition of his thesis work. He joined SRON in September 2019 and is currently leading the design of the Assembly Integration and Verification (AIV) effort for the SAFARI instrument on the SPICA mission.

“The experience I’ve gained from my PhD research has proven to be invaluable for my current position at SRON,” says Veenendaal. “The AIV of SAFARI involves a complex interplay of mechanical, electrical, optical, thermal and even logistical systems.”

U of L’s astrophysicists receive federal infrastructure grant

caroline.zentner — Mon, 17 Aug 2020 17:08:57 +0000

Thanks to a $250,000 grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation for research infrastructure, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge astrophysicists will develop a state-of-the-art cryogenic test facility to evaluate the performance of instruments destined for space exploration.

The Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG) at the U of L is poised to build a liquid-helium free cryostat and cryogenic translation stage that will be used to develop and test the world’s first cryogenic, far-Infrared, post-dispersed, polarizing Fourier transform spectrometer. This new type of spectrometer has been identified by the world’s leading space agencies (ESA, JAXA, NASA) as a necessary next step to explore both galaxy evolution in the farthest reaches of our universe and star and planet formation in our own galaxy.

“The large facility cryostat (LFC), as it will be known, will be housed in Science Commons, and extends the capabilities of our group, positioning us to become the partner of choice with leading space agencies and scientific consortia,” says Dr. David Naylor, a professor and Tier 1 Board of Governors’ Research Chair in the Department of Physics & Astronomy who leads the AIG.

More than half of the energy emitted by the universe falls in the far-infrared spectral region. Because the earth’s atmosphere blocks this energy, the instruments must be placed in space. Furthermore, they must be cooled to extremely low temperatures to achieve the required sensitivity. The LFC will allow scientists to evaluate the performance of novel instrument concepts at extreme cryogenic temperatures. One exciting application is its potential role in lunar exploration.

“Most people don’t think about how cold the surface of the Moon can get,” says Naylor. “With lunar night lasting a full 14 earth days, the temperature in some regions can plummet to 25 Kelvin, which is about –250 Celsius.”

With Canada a founding member of the international Lunar Gateway project, not only will Canadians set foot on the Moon, but Canadian industry will develop hardware for deployment on the lunar surface.

“Any hardware, regardless of its type or application, must be proven to survive lunar night with limited resources,” says Naylor. “The LFC will be a unique facility in Canada, capable of simulating the hostile environment of the coldest parts of the lunar surface.”

“Not only will this infrastructure elevate our research, it will help us prepare the next generation of astrophysicists,” says Dr. Locke Spencer, a professor and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in experimental astrophysics. “We will be able to offer our students, technicians and post-doctoral fellows highly specialized training in cryogenics, optics, electronics, mechanics, software development and project management.”

In addition to the $250,000 from the CFI, $360,000 has already been secured from four industrial partners, all active in the space exploration sector: ABB (Quebec City, Quebec), Blue Sky Spectroscopy (Lethbridge), QMC Instruments (Cardiff, UK) and the Space Research Organization of the Netherlands (Groningen, the Netherlands).

The research team will apply for matching funds from the provincial government later this year, bringing the total value of this project to $860,000. The support from four industrial partners, the enhanced training opportunities provided by this facility and the provincial and national economic impact were highlighted in the review process. Five former AIG-trained students now work in the space sector, three of them with NASA.

Leading undergraduate researchers coming to campus for URCSA conference, Apr. 29-30

trevor.kenney — Fri, 27 Apr 2018 17:49:48 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge will host many of the finest undergraduate student researchers in the province at the 4th Annual Undergraduate Research in Science Conference of Alberta (URSCA), Apr. 29-30, 2018.

A celebration of Alberta discovery and innovation at the earliest stage of post-secondary education, URSCA will feature over 90 undergraduate student demonstrations showcasing young Alberta researchers and their work through oral presentations and poster displays.

“Gone are the days when most researchers begin their original research at the graduate level,” says Dr. Matthew Letts, associate dean of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ’s Faculty of Arts & Science. “Increasingly, student-focused, research-intensive institutions are not only encouraging hands-on research in the laboratory and in the field at the undergraduate level but are also providing a wide range of experiential education opportunities.”

Dr. Ute Kothe (Alberta RNA Research and Training Institute, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry) will kick off the conference by presenting The Citizenship of Being a Researcher on Sunday, Apr. 29, 7 p.m. in Markin Hall Atrium. Based on Kothe’s experience in undergraduate research and having supervised more than 50 undergraduate researchers in biochemistry, she will share how undergraduate research equips students with transferable skills to the benefit of both their careers and society as a whole.

Dr. David Naylor (Department of Physics and Astronomy) will give the keynote address, Developing the Technology for the Next Generation of Space Exploration Missions (11:30 a.m., Urban Lounge), at which he will describe the technology development activities being conducted at the U of L, the lead Canadian institution in the ESA/JAXA SPICA mission.

Poster displays will be set up in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Centre for the Arts Atrium with oral presentations taking place throughout the day. For a full schedule of events, visit the URSCA website.

Board of Governors Research Chairs revealed

trevor.kenney — Tue, 18 Apr 2017 21:01:18 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Board of Governors appointed or reappointed seven Board of Governors Research Chairs at its regular meeting. The Board of Governors Research Chair program acknowledges the research accomplishments of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ faculty members.

“We’re proud to recognize these researchers for their consistently excellent work and the contributions they have made to their field of study,” says Dr. Erasmus Okine, Vice-President (Research). “They are representative of the outstanding research activities taking place across disciplines and throughout campus. Their studies are making substantial contributions to the quality of life locally, provincially, nationally and beyond.”

New Appointments

Dr. Aaron Gruber – Tier II Board of Governors Research Chair in Neuroscience
Dr. Gruber’s laboratory utilizes a wide array of computational and experimental techniques to study how the brain uses past experience to make good choices. The lab’s current focus is to use modern technologies for recording and manipulating large-scale neural activity to study how molecular actions of dopamine receptors affect brain dynamics to influence behaviour.

Dr. Maura Hanrahan – Tier II Board of Governors Research Chair in Native American Studies
Dr. Hanrahan brings a wealth of academic, policy and practical knowledge to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. She conducts interdisciplinary work in water security, foodways and nutrition history, Indigenous health, Indigenous land-use and Arctic exploration. Her work employs methods rooted in anthropology, ethnohistory, the humanities and Indigenous learning.

Dr. Jean-Baptiste Leca – Tier II Board of Governors Research Chair in Psychology
Dr. Leca’s research program on non-human primate behaviour aims to offer insights into the biological and culture underpinnings of human evolution. He is particularly interested in the proximate and ultimate causes of adaptive, questionably adaptive and non-adaptive behavioural patterns in free-ranging monkeys.

Reappointments

Dr. Igor Kovalchuk – Tier I Board of Governors Research Chair in Biological Sciences
The research in Dr. I. Kovalchuk’s lab is devoted to the analysis of epigenetic and genetic regulation of plant genome stability under normal and stressful conditions. In particular, he is interested in epigenetic regulation of transgenerational adaptation to stress and developing novel methods for improvement of plant transformation.

Dr. Olga Kovalchuk – Tier I Board of Governors Research Chair in Biological Sciences
Dr. O. Kovalchuk investigates the role of epigenetics in carcinogenesis and cancer treatment responses as well as the influence of epigenetics in radiation induced genome instability, DNA repair and carcinogenesis.

Dr. David Naylor – Tier I Board of Governors Research Chair in Physics & Astronomy
As the Director of the Astronomical Instrumentational Group, Dr. Naylor is recognized as a world leader in the development of novel instrumentation to explore the universe at far-infrared wavelengths. He is playing a leading role in training up-and-coming astronomers and engineers while contributing to Canada’s ability to play leading roles in future space astronomy missions.

Dr. Sergio Pellis – Tier I Board of Governors Research Chair in Neuroscience
Using a broad comparative approach, involving a range of rodents, primates and other animals, research in Dr. Pellis’ laboratory seeks to understand the evolutionary conditions that make it possible for play to be co-opted as a tool to sharpen social skills.

New links to industry and innovation realized as U of L joins Composites Research Network

trevor.kenney — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 18:49:47 +0000

Academic research, innovation, student opportunity and industry connection received a huge boost recently as the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge formally joined the Composites Research Network (CRN).

Canada’s leading network for composites research and the major link between academia and major composites industry partners, the CRN acts to bridge the divide between academic activity and industrial need.

Dr. David Naylor says that composites are the material of the future.

“This is a major step forward for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, putting our research into the hands of industry partners and creating multiple new opportunities for researchers and students alike,” says Dr. David Naylor, Board of Governors’ Research Chair in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and head of the Astronomical Instrumentation Group (AIG). “Being a part of this network will connect us to industry heavyweights like Boeing and Convergent Manufacturing Technologies.”

A composite material is that which is made from two or more constituent materials, when combined, produce a material with different characteristics from the individual materials. Advanced composites are replacing many metal components in use today, particularly in the aerospace industry. Describing composites as the material of the future, Naylor says the opportunities created through his group’s inclusion in the CRN are massive.

“We’re now partnered with Boeing in exploring this new realm of composite materials,” he says. “Composites are stronger than steel, lightweight, have virtually no conductivity, and for what we do in space, they are the perfect answer.”

As an example of the importance of composites in industry, Naylor points to Boeing and its design of the Boeing 787 aircraft, of which more than 50 per cent of the material is made from composites. Boeing also operates a satellite division and is heavily involved with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The U of L joins the CRN as the second Alberta node, along with ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta. The hub and main node of the network exists at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia, while ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Victoria, UBC-Okanagan, Camosun College, Canadian Light Source, Composites Innovation Centre and McGill ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ make up the rest of the academic nodes.

AIG has carved out an impeccable international reputation in recent years. Its work as part of the Herschel-SPIRE Consortium earned Naylor a Royal Astronomical Society award. Recently AIG was awarded $500,000 from the Canadian Space Agency (Flights and Fieldwork for the Advancement of Science and Technology grant) to train up-and-coming astronomers and engineers while contributing to Canada’s ability to play leading roles in future space astronomy missions.

“Composites are the future. The majority of new materials, whether it’s hot tubs, tractors, airplanes, spacecraft, bicycles, Lamborghinis, will be built out of composites. People are realizing that these advanced manufacturing techniques and products will end up everywhere in society,” says Naylor, whose group runs the leading cryogenic test facility in the country, allowing for the testing of components in extremely cold temperatures.

“We’re the only group that can do this kind of testing,” he says. “We can test material properties at extremely low temperatures, down to .3 Kelvin, which is 10 times lower than the Big Bang, the coldest part of the universe. You wouldn’t think that cryogenics would be at a small university such as ours but we are anomalous and we bring a unique skill set. We’re a solution looking for a problem and I think they’ve got problems we can help solve.”

By joining the CRN, Naylor and the AIG are transitioning to a new level of engagement.

“This is a prestigious group that leads the way in composites research. Our involvement in the CRN allows us access to specific training events and laboratory facilities and puts us in a collaborative position with the country’s key stakeholders,” he says. “To have that industry connection and to be a part of a network working to transition academic research into industrial practice is transformative for our group and our students. It will present them with massive opportunities.”

Final Herschel/SPIRE Consortium meeting hosted by ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge

trevor.kenney — Thu, 11 Feb 2016 20:29:47 +0000

Having played a major role in the mission’s unmitigated success, it is only fitting that the final Herschel/SPIRE Consortium meeting be held at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Leading scientists from around the world will attend a four-day conference, the SPIRE ICC Post-Ops Meeting, February 16-19, 2016, and the U of L’s Dr. David Naylor (physics and astronomy) will host the event.

The Herschel Space Observatory was launched in May 2009 from Kourou, French Guiana. Its sensitive suite of instruments was able to measure the tiny amount of energy associated with light emitted at far-infrared wavelengths to reveal the hidden universe.

“Herschel has been one of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) most successful space astronomy missions. It remains the largest telescope ever launched and has led to major breakthroughs in our understanding of the universe,” says Naylor, whose team of researchers created the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) that served as one of three scientific instruments attached to the Herschel telescope.

“It was expected that the final SPIRE meeting would be held in the U.K., but the principle investigator, Dr. Matt Griffin, specifically requested that we host the meeting in recognition of the leading role that Canada has played in the development, commissioning and performance optimization of SPIRE.”

The attendees at the meeting will include: Dr. Göran Pilbratt, the European Space Agency scientist for Herschel; SPIRE instrument principal investigator Dr. Matt Griffin; James Doherty, program lead, Space Exploration, Canadian Space Agency; Dr. Peter Roelfsema from the Space Research Organization of the Netherlands and the principal investigator of the SPICA mission (SPICA is the successor to Herschel and Dr. Naylor is leading the Canadian effort to establish a role for Canada in this mission); along with many scientists from the eight participating countries, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, United States, China and Canada.

Among the Canadian scientists attending who played a significant role in the success of SPIRE include Drs. Gary Davis (SKA Telescope), James DiFrancesco (��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Victoria), Mark Halpern (��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia), Peter Martin (��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Toronto), Douglas Scott (UBC) and Christine Wilson (McMaster ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ).

Herschel was able to provide a wealth of detail on the physical composition of, and conditions within, objects ranging from protostellar clouds to distant galaxies.

“SPIRE was able to detect unique spectral signatures not visible by optical telescopes. It produced amazing images of the interstellar medium that provide important clues on the formation and evolution of stars and ultimately galaxies,” describes Naylor.

The Herschel mission concluded in April 2013 when its onboard supply of liquid helium was exhausted. Since then, the mission has been in the post operations phase. The talks presented at this final post operations meeting will discuss key science results in themes ranging from the solar system to stars and galaxies; themes in which scientists from across Canada have been deeply involved.

“Our contributions to the SPIRE instrument have been significant,” says Naylor. “They have not only helped to put the U of L on the map, but ably supported by the Canadian Space Agency, helped to ensure that Canada remains a partner of choice in the next generation of space astronomy missions.”

Super cold deep freeze key to testing instruments destined for space

caroline.zentner — Thu, 13 Aug 2015 17:16:47 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s new cryogenic test facility (CTF) has allowed researchers in Dr. David Naylor’s astrophysics lab to be more productive, more energy efficient and more flexible.

“It’s working exactly as intended. It’s great,” says Naylor, a U of L physics and astronomy professor and Board of Governors Research Chair. “I do have to thank the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the province, and the manufacturer, Quantum Technologies.”

Ian Veenendaal, a graduate student, loads the chassis of a Fourier transform spectrometer into the new cryogenic test facility.

The CTF, which cost slightly more than $375,000, allows U of L scientists to test instruments to ensure they work in extreme cold before they are sent into space. Before the new CTF was installed, the U of L was capable of testing only smaller instruments in its fleet of cylindrical cryostats. Typically, individual components are tested in laboratories around the world before being integrated in a major space agency facility.

The new CTF can accommodate instruments about the size of a large toaster oven, enabling whole instruments to be tested at once. The CTF will help position the U of L for participation in future space astronomy missions. Naylor’s team has previously designed and built instrumentation that has gone into space so the CTF, along with U of L expertise, will expand the laboratory’s capacity.

“I would say that the CTF has increased our productivity by a factor of 10. It allows us far more flexibility and enables us to try different things out,” says Naylor. “It can achieve temperatures 10 times colder than the universe and it uses no liquid helium consumable.”

Instruments heading into space must be able to operate at 4 Kelvin (-269 C). Naylor’s group is currently testing a Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS), an instrument that measures the far infrared universe and the kind of instrument Naylor says is being considered for the next generation of space missions.

Ian Veenendaal, a graduate student, has been closely involved with the building and installation of the CTF and now with its operation.

“We will be delivering a report to the Canadian Space Agency at the end of the year and we are working to show that we are capable of building an FTS and operating it at 4 Kelvin,” says Veenendaal.

UNews - David Naylor

��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researchers secure support through Alberta’s Major Innovation Fund

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