Scientists worldwide have used the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (CSO) since 1987 but in 2009, the California Institute of Technology said that it will dismantle the observatory atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii by 2016.

It appears, however, that CSO will be shut down ahead of schedule as Caltech announced on Thursday that the facility will be closed in September, which is much sooner than expected.

Simon Radford, CSO technical operation manager, said that funds are no longer sufficient to continue operating the telescope that has played a crucial role in many space discoveries including those associated with star formation.

"And essentially, we came to the point where we no longer have sufficient funds to operate the telescope after September. And so if we don't have money to operate the telescope, then we have to close the telescope," Radford said.

Radford said that although he is saddened to see to telescope go, he is still thankful for what researchers including himself were able to accomplish during the time that the observatory was operational. He thanked the state of Hawaii, the University of Hawaii and the people of Hawaii for making it possible to have a telescope on Mauna Kea as this has allowed researchers to conduct scientific works that are otherwise not possible to do at any other location.

Caltech's announcement came after Hawaii Governor David Ige announced he wants to see better stewardship on Mauna Kea and this includes the decommissioning or at least three telescopes. Caltech intends to restore the site to its natural state come 2018.

In a statement, Ige said that although the telescope has made significant contributions to scientific research, it has already reached the end of its useful life. Ige also commended Caltech for its effort to dismantle the telescope and restore the site.

"I appreciate Caltech's commitment to dismantling this telescope quickly and restoring the site in a culturally and environmentally respectful manner," Ige said.

 The observatory has played critical role in the accomplishments in the field of submillimeter and millimeter astronomy, which involves the study of light emanating from molecules, atoms and dust grains in space, where cosmic objects such as stars and planets form.

Submillimeter astronomy was barely explored when the observatory was built in 1985 but over the past thirty years, it has helped pay way for more related facilities, which include the Atacama Large Millimeter Array in Chile.

Photo: Jason Marshall | Flickr