East Asian Observatory

Operation of the james clerk maxwell telescope (jcmt) for scientific endeavor. Jcmt, with a diameter of 15 meters, is the largest astronomical telescope in the world designed specifically to operate in the submillimeter wavelength region of the spectrum. The jcmt is used to study our solar system, interstellar and circumstellar dust and gas, and distant galaxies. Observing time each year is divided up among the founding institutions, and the broader observing community has access through specific scientific partnerships. Typically about 600 scientists all over the world make use of the jcmt every year, and they publish on the order of 200 papers every year in scientific journals. Jcmt also continues to maintain and improve a suite of advanced instruments for research on the telescope.

Provide support for astronomers and students to engage in research at the jcmt, to calibrate their data from the telescope, and to produce scientific publications. Jcmt staff also hosted and participated in international educational workshops and conferences. The jcmt also has a public outreach program which aims to foster a greater appreciation of science, and of astronomy in particular, and also to provide educational and training opportunities to high school students in Hawaii.

Provide technical support for the event horizon telescope project from the very long baseline interferometry groups at jcmt. This project participates annually in a global experiment involving many other telescopes to image the shadow of the supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies.