UK ALMA Regional Centre Node Support: 2016 - 2020

The Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array (ALMA) is the largest, most complex, and most expensive ground-based telescope ever built, and the UK ALMA Regional Centre (ARC) Node ensures British astronomers can actually use it. ALMA studies star formation across cosmic time by detecting millimetre and sub-millimetre wavelengths of light that are invisible to optical telescopes. Without dedicated support, UK astronomers would struggle to access this instrument, design effective observations, and interpret the complex data it produces. The UK ARC Node fills this gap by providing training, face-to-face assistance, and contributing to the European ARC and the Joint ALMA Observatory to improve data quality and expand the telescope's capabilities. This is fundamental science with no immediate practical application. The research addresses how stars and galaxies form, a question that has driven astronomy for centuries. If the Node succeeds, the UK community will extract maximum scientific return from its investment in ALMA, producing discoveries about the origins of planetary systems and the evolution of the universe. Historically, similar fundamental work in radio astronomy led to technologies like Wi-Fi and satellite communications, but this project's primary value is deepening our understanding of the cosmos itself.