Blast off for Spaceport

National Schools Observatory moves to £10million visitor attraction

Thanks to a unique partnership between LJMU's Astrophysics Research Institute (ARI) and Mersey Ferries, the North West now has an amazing new tourist attraction, Spaceport. The new £10million visitor attraction is expected to attract up to 100,000 visitors a year.

Mike Bode, LJMU's Professor of Astrophysics, said: ''As a visitor attraction, Spaceport needed to be exciting and fun but it also aspires to be educational. Finding the correct balance between excitement and learning has proved challenging but thanks to the ARI's extensive involvement with schoolchildren through the National Schools Observatory, and the considerable knowledge of the leisure industry brought to bear by Mersey Ferries, our scientists were more than a match for the task. The resulting interactive exhibits are not only great fun but educational too.''

Housed in one of the region's finest art deco buildings at Mersey Ferries' Seacombe Terminal, Spaceport offers visitors an astonishing array of interactive exhibits and space information, ranging from wormholes and blackholes to supernovae, spiral galaxies and Britain's very own Starchaser rocket.

Councillor Mark Dowd, chair of Merseytravel, which owns both Spaceport and Mersey Ferries, said: ''Spaceport is a unique attraction, both educational and entertaining. It will provide a great family day out for the people of Merseyside and far beyond.''

Working closely with scriptwriters and designers, LJMU's scientists and other Spaceport project partners produced storyboards for all the exhibits and interactive displays, creating a drama that will see visitors blast off from Earth in a space pod for an exhilarating journey through the solar system to the far reaches of the Universe via a wormhole.

Professor Bode continued: ''The Universe is a very mysterious place and Spaceport cleverly harnesses iconic ideas from science fiction, like flying saucers and men from Mars, to demonstrate science fact and pose serious questions on whether, for example, life exists elsewhere in the Universe.''

The ARI is internationally acclaimed for its astrophysics research in a range of fields (from the search for extra-solar planets to the structure of the Universe) and for its expertise in robotic telescope technology. ARI also re-established the UK's ability to build large optical telescopes by developing the world's largest robotic telescope, the Liverpool Telescope (LT), now situated in La Palma, Canaries. To accomplish this, LJMU established Telescope Technologies Limited in 1995, to design and build the LT and subsequently other large fully robotic telescopes for use by research institutions around the world.

The ARI is committed to advancing the public understanding of science and donates a proportion of the Liverpool Telescope's observational time for use by UK schools. Around 500 schools are currently members of the ARI's National Schools' Observatory, giving thousands of primary and secondary school pupils access to their own high quality astronomical images and a range of related resources.

Following its launch, Spaceport will become the public face and home of the National Schools' Observatory, though it will still be maintained by LJMU. A special Spaceport exhibit will showcase how schools can get involved. Visitors will also be able to access the National Schools' Observatory website and see some of the latest Liverpool Telescope images for themselves.

LJMU hopes that the relocation to Spaceport will encourage more schools to join the National Schools' Observatory and ensure that it reaches its target of 1200 member schools by 2007.

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