Astronomy researchers in Canada celebrated the opening of the NSF–DOE Vera C Rubin Observatory in Chile this summer. The first-of-its-kind observatory is equipped with an 8.5-metre mirror and the largest digital camera ever built, and will create a time-lapse record of the southern hemisphere’s skies over the course of the next decade. Researchers from institutions such as Bishop’s University, the University of Toronto, and the University of Waterloo are supporting the development of the software and computing infrastructure that will process the observatory’s raw images. In exchange for this support, Bishop’s says that Canadian researchers and students will have early access to observatory data. “The telescope and camera are so sensitive that, in theory, it could detect the faint glow of a candle at the distance of the Moon,” explained Bishop’s Professor Dr John Ruan.
