The CFI Invests Over $12M in Space Exploration

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WATERLOO, September 26, 2003— Today, Dr. David Strangway, President and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and Allan Rock, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Canada Foundation for Innovation, announced a CFI investment of $12.3 million for the development of a next generation Submillimetre Common User Bolometer Array (SCUBA) camera for astronomers.  

SCUBA-2 is a tremendous leap forward for space exploration research enabling researchers to do in one night what currently takes three years. The camera will have unprecedented imaging speed and access to a much wider field of view, enabling its users to look at such research issues as the early history of star formation as well as the structure, formation, and clustering of galaxies.

“This project represents priority areas of research in Canadian radio astronomy—areas which are fast moving and internationally competitive,” said Minister Rock. “Funding from the CFI has enabled our Canadian researchers to gain access to unique research facilities and is placing Canada among the world’s most innovative nations.”

“SCUBA-2 is a major technological collaboration which will develop a broader electronics capability in Canada,” said Dr. David Strangway, President and CEO of the CFI. “Today’s announcement represents an important boost for our Canadian institutions to further their research and become international leaders in the field of astronomy.”

The funds were awarded to a consortium of eight universities, administratively led by the University of Waterloo. This program involves direct collaboration with the University of Edinburgh and the University of Wales (Cardiff). In addition, expertise will be provided by the National Institute of Science and Technology

(NIST), a leading U.S. research institution which has unique expertise in that area. Operationally, the program will involve collaboration with the U.K., the Netherlands, and the University of Hawaii, using the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope.

“The CFI investment allows our Canadian institutions to further their research missions and provides the opportunity to showcase the best of Canadian research in a global context,” said Dr. Rey Pagtakhan, Minister of Veteran’s Affairs and Secretary of State (Science, Research and Development).

Today’s funding announcement is the second of nine large-scale international research projects under the CFI’s International Access Fund aimed at offering Canadian researchers access to world-class research collaborations and facilities located around the world.

The CFI is an independent corporation established by the Government of Canada in 1997 to strengthen the capacity of Canadian universities, colleges, research hospitals, and other non-profit research organizations to carry out world-class research and technology development.

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