A slip of the tongue by Australian National University Vice Chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt suggested "interstellar" guests might soon be visiting the new centre at Mount Stromlo. The journey might be a long one, we'll probably know they're coming given the amount of work being done by the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics which is based there, but at least now they'll be able to get a decent cup of coffee.
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The opening of the new visitors' centre and cafe marks the completion of the renewal of the Mount Stromlo site which was decimated by the 2003 bushfires.
The redevelopment includes interactive astronomy exhibits, with a Skyzone space for children, and an accompanying app which features animations of some of the exhibits, virtual tours of telescopes and laboratories, and holograms of RSAA scientists.
Dr Brad Tucker, of the RSAA, said the redevelopment would give the public a window into what was happening at the site.
"There's this impression that Stromlo ended in 2003 and it's the exact opposite," Dr Tucker said.
"At Stromlo we're now doing things we were never able to imagine: participating in the Giant Magellan Telescope project, building satellites, tracking space debris ...
"Now not only can people learn about that, they can be a part of the research. This just isn't about telling people what is happening, this is about being part of the discovery."
Dr Tucker said the centre's exhibits were informative and would inspire people to learn more about astronomy.
"Our heliostat, which is a sun mirror rebuilt from one of Mount Stromlo's first telescopes, will allow people to see sunspots, solar flares and other elements on the sun," Dr Tucker said.
"Video animations will recreate black holes and a wormhole near Saturn. The animations were done by Double Negative, known for their work on the film Interstellar. Custom-made animations and video games at the centre show how we are trying to solve the human-made space debris problem.
"We also show how we detect gravitational waves with a small-scale interferometer."
Professor Schmidt, who won his Nobel Prize in 2011 for his research conducted from Mount Stromlo, said the reopening was the "missing piece of the puzzle" for the site following the bushfires.
He praised the teams involved in the redevelopment and those conducting world-leading research from the site.
Other exhibits at the Mount Stromlo centre include satellites, meteorites and a seismometer where people can create their own small-scale earthquakes. The centre also shows a history of the Mount Stromlo site, detailing its national heritage and how it has changed over the past 100 years.
The refurbished cafe and eatery at the visitors' centre will be managed by the Canberra Southern Cross Club.
After the formalities were over Professor Schmidt was found playing around with the heliostat. A group of scientists milled around watching their Vice Chancellor going back to his research roots. You can take the scientist out of the lab and put him in a suit, but you can't take the science out of the man.
The visitors' centre has every chance of inspiring the rest of us as well.
