The historic Jodrell Bank observatory is under threat from government spending cuts.
Chancellor George Osborne is due to spell out its future in October.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills could lose up to 40 per cent of its budget. And it has already admitted it may not be able to afford the £2.5m annual running costs for the landmark, near Goostrey, Cheshire, described as a ‘national treasure’.
A planned £3m interactive visitor centre is also under threat.
It is the second time in two years that a question mark has hung over the observatory, which is home to the iconic Lovell Telescope.
The Science and Technology Facilities Council – which controls science funding in Britain – sparked an outcry when it threatened to pull the plug on the observatory’s e-Merlin project in 2008.
The project links the power of seven telescopes around the world to give unrivalled pictures of the depths of space.
A huge M.E.N-backed campaign helped to secure Jodrell Bank’s short-term future by winning a two-year grant from the council.
Astronomers also won £3.1m for the visitor centre from the North West Development Agency in May this year – just weeks before it was scrapped.
The planned Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre would be at least four times the size of the existing one and include a planetarium, education complex and interactive exhibits.
Now, as all government departments face cuts, the centre may once again face a fight for survival.
A spokeswoman for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said: "The government wants science to emerge from these tough economic times to be strong, sustainable and effective.
"But public spending on science, just like everything else, has to stand up to rigorous economic scrutiny."
The Jodrell Bank observatory is famous for revealing that the Russian’s Sputnik probe had successfully entered earth’s orbit, and has gone on to score stunning scientific successes – such as providing the greatest proof yet of Einstein’s theory of relativity. Mr Osborne is due to reveal details of cuts in his Comprehensive Spending Review on October 20.
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just another excuse by the goverment to totaly screw th country.
what next a tax on breathing from 5 am til 11pm
Jodrell Bank has to be run as a commercial enterprise if it is to increase income. These days this institute cannot continue to rely on regular government handouts in the name of 'research' alone - however important this work really is. If this was in the USA - Jodrell Bank would be a huge success - that's for sure. Apart from the important scientific work - which is seen a vital when listenening to those learned and enlightened professionals. In the states they would have, if you like, a 'Disney style' park for the kids with lots of interactive experiments and exhibits etc - aswell as a really up to date planetarium.
Come to think of it Jodrell Bank used to have it's own planetarium years ago - but they pulled it down, why ?
Why can't I have a say on where "cuts" are too be implemented? After all I am sure that I am one of the many(?) that pay tax to help fund such places. Why not make cuts at No 10, after all who needs 2 inadequate clowns making a mockery of us anyway?
if this land mark were down south it would be funded no matter what
Buy shares in mothballs.
It won't even get Sky Sports.
Forget HD.
The Russian Sputnik !!!
Niet !!
Dear Amanda. Please be so kind as to tell all the other journos at your left-wing paper that the opposite of "government cuts" is taking money from our children and grandchildren to spend it on us today, rather than leaving it for them to enjoy in the future. All three parties' manifestos at the last general election were built on the idea that we should add hundreds of billions more to this country's mountain of debt. It has to stop. It absolutely has to stop, whether the MEN whines on about "govenrment cuts" or not. We simply don't have the money. Let's allow the next two generations a chance to make a life for themselves, rather than robbing them before they're old enough to see what we're doing to them.
A great shame. I hope they can salvage money from somewhere else, if they do cut its funding.
Oh great...typical. Science, education and culture suffer. How about cutting spending on the Olympic Stadium? Sports events? Affect or damage sport? Oooooh never!!!
Gotta pay your own way thesedays folks....
Lots of history here and a very important role to play in world astronomy. I took the kids there in the spring and whilst we had an enjoyable hour or two, that was about all you can drag out of the place - it is kinda boring once you've gotten past the 'gawping up - look how big it is' stage. Make the place a bit more interesting (it genuinely IS interesting after all) and more people might visit more than once.
Government funding for Jodrell Bank has never been consistent. Construction wouldn't have been finished in time for Sputnik if it hadn't been for voluntary donations from the public.
Being as we can't trust any government to support Jodrell Bank properly, especially in the current financial circumstances, it seems to me that other solutions need to be looked into.
One alternative would be to turn over the facility to a charitable trust which will preserve it and maintain support for astronomical research. Building a new visitor centre would also help to raise funds and maintain interest in the sight.
You think they would have seen that coming...
Ironically, today (Monday) is apparently Professor Sir Bernard Lovell's 97th birthday.
Let's hope that in 3 years he's around to see his century, and to see his radio telescope still very much in operation.