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The Institute of Astronomy (IoA) is the largest of the three astronomy departments in the University of Cambridge, and one of the largest astronomy sites in the UK. Around 170 academics, postdocs, visitors and assistant staff work at the department.

Research at the department is made in a number of scientific areas, including stars, star clusters, cosmology, the high-redshift universe, AGN, galaxies and galaxy clusters. This is a mixture of observational astronomy, over the entire electromagnetic spectrum, computational theoretical astronomy, and analytic theoretical research.

The Kavli Institute for Cosmology is due to be built on the department site in 2008. This Institute will have the emphasis of The Universe at High Redshifts. The current plans are to also bring the Cavendish Astrophysics Group onto the site eventually.

History
The Institute was formed in 1972 from the amalgamation of earlier institutions:
 * The University Observatory, founded in 1823. Its building now houses offices and the department library.
 * The Solar Physics Observatory, which started in Cambridge in 1912. The building is due to be demolished in 2008 to make way for the Kavli Institute for Cosmology.
 * The Institute of Theoretical Astronomy, which was created by Fred Hoyle in 1967. Its building is the main departmental site (the Hoyle Building), with a lecture theatre added in 1999, and a second two-storey wing built in 2002.

Teaching
The department teaches 3rd and 4th year undergraduates as part of the Natural sciences tripos or Mathematical tripos. In addition, there are around 12 to 18 graduate PhD and masters students at the department per year, mainly funded by the STFC. The graduate programme is particularly unusual in the UK as the students are free to choose their own PhD supervisor or adviser from the staff at the department, and this choice is often made as late as the end of their first term.

Notable Current Members
Here is a list of notable current members of the department.
 * George Efstathiou (Director)
 * Andrew Fabian
 * Gerry Gilmore
 * Robert Kennicutt (Plumian Professor of Astronomy)
 * Donald Lynden-Bell
 * Martin Rees

Notable Past Members
Here are some notable members of the Department and its former institutes.
 * George Airy
 * Arthur Eddington
 * Richard Ellis
 * Fred Hoyle
 * Harold Jeffreys
 * Jeremiah Ostriker

Telescopes
The Institute houses several telescopes on its site. Although some scientific work is done with the telescopes, they are mostly used for public observing and astronomical societies. The poor weather and light-pollution in Cambridge makes most modern astronomy difficult. The telescopes on the site include: The Cambridge University Astronomical Society (CUAS) and Cambridge Astronomical Association (CAA) both regularly observe. The Institute holds public observing evenings in University term-time on Wednesdays.
 * The Northumberland Telescope donated by the Duke of Northumberland in 1833. This is a 12 in diameter refractor on an English mount.
 * The smaller Thorrowgood Telescope, on extended loan from the Royal Astronomical Society. The telescope is an 8 in refractor.
 * The Schmidt Camera, built in 1952 with a 24 in mirror.
 * The 36-inch Telescope, built in 1951 and thought to be the largest telescope in the UK.
 * The Three-Mirror Telescope, which is a prototype telescope with a unique design to have wide field of view, sharp images and all-reflection optics.

Public activities
The department holds a number of events involving the general public in astronomy. These include
 * Wednesday evening observing nights in term time
 * Astroblast
 * Annual sculpture exhibition showing work of Anglia Ruskin University
 * Annual open day during National Science Week
 * A monthly podcast, the 'Astropod', aimed at the general public