ANU appoints new Director for Siding Spring Observatory

Chris is one of Australia's leading astronomers and he will ensure Siding Spring Observatory remains Australia's top observatory and a centre known around the world for its excellence in astronomy. The Australian National University (ANU) has appointed astronomer Dr Chris Lidman as the first Director of the ANU Siding Spring Observatory. Dr Lidman will oversee operations at the Observatory, which is home to more than 50 telescopes and is an important site for global astronomy, astrophysics and space science in Australia. Siding Spring is home to the ANU SkyMapper telescope, which is mapping the entire southern sky, and to the ANU United Kingdom Schmidt Telescope, which is taking spectra for 2 million nearby galaxies and 3 million bright stars. From 1 July, ANU will take over operations for the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) at Siding Spring. The AAT is Australia's largest optical telescope and a national facility serving all Australian astronomers. Director of the ANU Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics Professor Matthew Colless welcomed Dr Lidman to the new role.