DoctorJamie McCallum

Project Total: $8,721; The UTAS owned radiotelescope at Yarragadee is sited on a Geoscience Australia (GA) site and locally supported by GA staff. As part of a safety uplift underway at GA, formal documentation of the observatory site, safe work procedures, expected roles and responsibilities is required. To support this, GA are contributing material support (such as an approved chemical storage locker for fuel/oils) as well as offering to support UTAS in providing training to the local staff. This project is aimed at developing the required documentation for the local GA site and to support a site visit before the middle of the year. This will enable us to continue to operate the Yarragadee radiotelescope efficiently in support of the existing research contract with GA. GA have advised is that they can reimburse the costs of a site visit for two UTAS staff in order to gather the relevant information and provide training to local GA staff. The proposed budget covers the approximate cost of return flights (Hobart->Geraldon), one week's accommodation for two UTAS staff and the hire car costs. The UTAS deliverables from this project are a set of safe work, operations and maintenance documentation for GA and the on-site training of the local staff. Both should be completed before the end of this financial year. %%%%%%%%%% Below is the suggested email to be sent to GA %%%%%%%%%%%% Background: The University of Tasmania operates a radiotelescope in WA on a Geoscience Australia site, with extensive local support from GA staff. As part of a safety uplift conducted by GA, we have been working closely together to align safe work procedures and risk assessments. One issue that has been identified is a need for a Site Manual for the local GA staff, describing the current state of the observatory, roles and responsibilities for GA and UTAS staff. GA have offered to support UTAS in the preparation of such a suite of documents and in order to provide training for the local GA staff. The University of Tasmania is the only group in Australia operating telescopes for geodetic VLBI and has unique experience in maintaining and operating the AuScope array. The staff have already generated an extensive set of documentation on the systems for internal use and are actively involved in refreshing and compiling this into an operations manual and maintenance schedule for each of the AuScope telescopes. Developing this into a specific Site Manual for the Geoscience Australia staff at Yarragadee is both achievable and desirable for the continued reliability of the telescope. Deliverables: UTAS can undertake to prepare a set of documentation for the Yarragadee observatory for the local GA staff which will cover: General schematic of the site and essential components Maintenance schedule (for GA staff specifically) Risk assessments, safe work procedures, training requirements & other safety-related materials Diagnostic procedures and clear guidelines on how to relay information to UTAS Clear guidelines on work beyond the scope of GA staff. Additionally, a site visit of 1 week is planned to finalise the manual with on-site inspection and documentation, together with in-person training for the local GA staff (May) Training, orientation of GA staff as per Site manual WHS Funded by: Geoscience Australia ($8,721); University of Tasmania.

Project Total: $4,730,000; This project funds the operation of the AuScope geodetic very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) array, as part of a global network. VLBI is a key-technique to measure the terrestrial and celestial reference frames as well as the Earths orientation in space, as defined in the United Nations Global Geodetic Reference Frame (GGRF) initiative. Using four of UTAS radio telescopes, located in Hobart, Katherine and Yarragadee this project manages Australias contribution to the International VLBI Service for Geodesy and Astrometry (IVS). Funded by: Geoscience Australia ($4,730,000); University of Tasmania.

Project Total: $4,760,000; This project will support the operation of the AuScope geodetic very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) array, as part of a global network. The 4 radio telescopes of the array are all owned by UTAS, located in Hobart, Katherine and Yarragadee. VLBI operations are highly specialised and need constant research and troubleshooting from skilled scientist. Having reliable and accurate observations as their main aim, Geoscience Australia funds this project including dedicated research towards improved operations and better results. This project is also the basis for maintaining our unique telescope facilities across the continent. Funded by: Geoscience Australia ($4,760,000); University of Tasmania.

Project Total: $5,165,171; Funded by: Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources - Collaborative Research Infrastructure Scheme CRIS ($1,333,000); Geoscience Australia ($3,832,171); University of Tasmania.

Project Total: $28,000; Funded by: University of Tasmania - Grant-Research Enhancement (REGS); University of Tasmania ($28,000).