Just hours after a budget cut that will end the days of the Mont-Mégantic Observatory was announced, the Canadian government stepped up, saying it will help pay for upkeep to ensure the facility stays open.
The Mont-Mégantic Observatory is under the management of the University of Montreal but it was set to close April 1 because of budget cuts. Currently, Ottawa provides the observatory with $400,000 a year but this only takes care of half the facility's operating expenses. With federal funding slashed, the university will not have enough to keep the observatory up and running, a shame given the facility was regarded by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada as being the East Coast's most important observatory because of its size.
The scientific community was definitely relieved then when Christian Paradis, Canada's International Development Minister, announced that the government will be pitching in to help.
"Our government will finance the Mont-Mégantic Observatory for the next 2 years so that it remains accessible to the public," said Paradis in a Twitter post.
Located in Quebec province, the observatory is home to a telescope weighing nearly 24 tons. Fitted with a 3.3-foot mirror, the telescope and the observatory was opened in 1978 and since then has been used in the discovery of several planetary bodies, attracting 20,000 visitors annually to the region for guided tours and use of an activity center.
The Mont-Mégantic Observatory sits 3,600 feet above sea level 155 miles east of Montreal. To keep the region around it sparsely populated, a dark sky reserve was established, keeping the area free from the flood of artificial light that will interfere with observing the skies.
As the only university observatory operating in Canada, the Mont-Mégantic Observatory is very important to the scientific community. Researchers objected to the budget cuts as they know it will jeopardize operations in the facility but government officials turned a deaf ear to their arguments.
The ruling Tories have been accused by scientists before of advancing a political agenda that brushes aside research findings. In 2012, scientists held a mock funeral to mourn the death of evidence in the country. Last year, a protest was held when science libraries were closed.
The government, of course, rejected these claims, saying efforts are in place to support research. There's simply a need to cut overall spending that can't be ignored.
