The UK’s Jodrell Bank Observatory is among those losing out after research projects were told how they have fared in a “prioritisation programme” for physics funding.
The site, which houses the UK’s largest telescope, has lost its £2.8 million annual budget from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and could now close unless alternative funding is found, leaders told BBC News.
UKRI is seeking to cut the annual spending of the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) by £162 million by 2029-30 because of rising costs.
On 27 July, it outlined which projects had been deemed “not prioritised for further funding”, and they include “e-MERLIN”, a network of seven telescopes headquartered at Jodrell Bank.
Other projects being defunded include UK support for upgrading the Large Hadron Collider at Cern and the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii.
