noirlab2425 — Organization Release

Simonyi Survey Telescope Dedicated at NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory Ceremony

Simonyi family’s $20 million gift supports a new era of discovery

11 October 2024

NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory celebrated a landmark moment in astronomy and astrophysics with the dedication of the Simonyi Survey Telescope on 4 October 2024. With the Simonyi family as guests of honor, Rubin Observatory recognized the pivotal role of Charles and Lisa Simonyi’s philanthropy in advancing construction of the Observatory and supporting research that will soon transform our understanding of the Universe.

Vera C. Rubin Observatory, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science (DOE), proudly announced the naming of its state-of-the-art 8.4-meter telescope as the Simonyi Survey Telescope during a dedication ceremony held on 4 October 2024. This celebratory event at the Rubin Observatory Summit Facility on Cerro Pachón in Chile was attended by the Simonyi family, Rubin Observatory leadership, representatives of NSF and DOE, NOIRLab leadership, and other guests.

“This marvelous machine — envisioned by Tony Tyson more than twenty years ago and created by hundreds of scientists, engineers, and technicians — will do the the yeoman’s work for thousands of astronomers around the world, leading us to countless new and exciting discoveries,” said Charles Simonyi. “We are greatly humbled by and proud of the naming of the Simonyi Survey Telescope.”

The Simonyi Survey Telescope’s name recognizes the financial support of the Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts and Sciences, which provided a $20 million gift in 2008 that enabled construction of the telescope’s mirrors. That foundational support provided early momentum that — along with Rubin being ranked as the top large ground-based initiative in the 2010 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey — helped transform Rubin Observatory from an idea to a major research facility. The project was fully realized through more than $800 million in federal funding from NSF and DOE. Simonyi continues to open doors for researchers through his collaboration with NSF on the NSF-Simonyi Scholars program which supports early career researchers focused on the science that Rubin Observatory will enable when it begins operations in 2025.

“We are thrilled to honor the Simonyi family’s commitment to advancing astronomical discovery and exploration,” said Zeljko Ivezic, Director of Rubin Observatory Construction. “Their support has been crucial for the construction of this world-class facility and for the scientists who will use the Simonyi Survey Telescope to better understand our Universe.”

The 2008 gift from the Simonyi family enabled the early construction of the telescope’s groundbreaking 8.4-meter primary/tertiary mirror at the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab at the University of Arizona.

In addition to funding key construction activities, Simonyi’s contribution helped launch visionary programs such as the LSST Corporation (now the LSST Discovery Alliance) Data Science Fellowship Program, a two-year course that trains graduate students to meet the scientific challenges posed by large astronomy datasets. “The original Simonyi family investment in Rubin Observatory laid critical groundwork for developing next-generation leaders for the era of big data,” said Beth Willman, Chief Executive Officer for the LSST Discovery Alliance.

In 2022, Simonyi pledged an annual gift of $1M for 10 years to support early-career researchers engaged in the science that the Rubin Observatory will enable. That gift was matched by funds from NSF, creating the NSF-Simonyi Scholars program, which provided support to researchers through existing NSF programs including the Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER), the NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics postdoctoral fellowships (AAPF), and the Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Grants (AAG).

In its first year, the NSF-Simonyi Scholars program funded awards to five researchers. Based on the success of the program’s first year, Simonyi doubled his contribution to $2M in the second year, an increase that was also matched by NSF. This funding enabled awards to nine researchers in 2024.

The naming of the Simonyi Survey Telescope recognizes the Simonyi family’s commitment to cutting-edge science. Rubin Observatory, with the Simonyi Survey Telescope and LSST Camera at its core, is poised to give us the fullest, most exquisitely detailed view of the cosmos to date. Once operational, it will conduct the 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), capturing unprecedented images of the night sky and enabling transformational discoveries.

More information

NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science, is a groundbreaking new astronomy and astrophysics observatory under construction on Cerro Pachón in Chile, with first light expected in 2025. It is named after astronomer Vera Rubin, who provided the first convincing evidence for the existence of dark matter. The 8.4-meter telescope at Rubin Observatory, equipped with the largest digital camera in the world, will take detailed images of the southern hemisphere sky, covering the entire sky every few nights. Rubin will do this over and over for 10 years, creating a timelapse view of the Universe that’s unlike anything we’ve seen before. Rubin Observatory’s 10-year survey is called the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST).

NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a joint initiative of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science (DOE/SC). Its primary mission is to carry out the Legacy Survey of Space and Time, providing an unprecedented data set for scientific research supported by both agencies. Rubin is operated jointly by NSF NOIRLab and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. NSF NOIRLab is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), and SLAC is operated by Stanford University. France provides key support to the construction and operations of Rubin Observatory through contributions from CNRS/IN2P3. Rubin Observatory gratefully acknowledges additional contributions from more than 40 international organizations and teams.

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 to promote the progress of science. NSF supports basic research and people to create knowledge that transforms the future.

The DOE’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

NSF NOIRLab (U.S. National Science Foundation National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory), the U.S. center for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy, operates the International Gemini Observatory (a facility of NSF, NRC–Canada, ANID–Chile, MCTIC–Brazil, MINCyT–Argentina, and KASI–Republic of Korea), Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), the Community Science and Data Center (CSDC), and Vera C. Rubin Observatory (in cooperation with DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory). It is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with NSF and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona. The astronomical community is honored to have the opportunity to conduct astronomical research on I’oligam Du’ag (Kitt Peak) in Arizona, on Maunakea in Hawai‘i, and on Cerro Tololo and Cerro Pachón in Chile. We recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that these sites have to the Tohono O’odham Nation, to the Native Hawaiian community, and to the local communities in Chile, respectively.

SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is a vibrant multiprogram laboratory that explores how the Universe works at the biggest, smallest, and fastest scales and invents powerful tools used by scientists around the globe. With research spanning particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology, materials, chemistry, bio- and energy sciences and scientific computing, SLAC helps solve real-world problems and advance the interests of the nation.

SLAC is operated by Stanford University for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.