On Monday February 18th the Minister of Research and Higher Education, Ms. Tora Aasland, will officially open the Kjell Henriksen Observatory. She and UNIS will celebrate the opening of our new Aurora observatory together with 70 guests from all over the world.

Text: Eva Therese Jenssen

Monday February 18th 2008 is a historic day for UNIS. The Kjell Henriksen Observatory (KHO) is officially opened by prominent guests from Norway and abroad.

– We have waited a long time for this day and we are immensely proud to open the world’s northernmost and most modern northern lights observatory, says UNIS director Gunnar Sand.

Tora Aasland. Minister of Research and Higher Education will officially open the Kjell Henriksen Observatory (Photo: Arild Hjelm).

An important contributor to future research
Minister of Research and Higher Education, Ms. Tora Aasland, will open the observatory officially in a ceremony in front of KHO, situated 500 meters above sea level on the mountain Breinosa (also known as the Mine 7 Mountain).

The minister is joined by the Swedish astronaut Christer Fuglesang, the family of Kjell Henriksen, and guests from institutions that over the years have worked closely with UNIS in the middle- and upper polar research field.

- Research is one of the main pillars of Norwegian presence on Svalbard, and UNIS is one of the main actors. The new observatory will be an important contributor to the future international research cooperation, says Aasland.

- A giant step for Aurora research
- I am convinced that this new research facility will represent a central addition to the research infrastructure in Svalbard, and I believe KHO will produce significant results in the future, Aasland says.

The previous station, located in Adventdalen, was old and the scientists had an increasing problem with light pollution from Longyearbyen, which affects the light-sensitive optical instruments. This was the main reason for building a new station high upon the mountain.

- The opening of KHO is a giant step for Norwegian Aurora research, says professor and observatory manager Fred Sigernes. – But it is not only a giant step for Norway; we also have a strong cooperation with other countries, he adds.

International research platform
There are 16 scientific organizations from 7 nations represented with instruments in the new observatory, among them The University of Alaska-Fairbanks, University College London and the National Institute of Polar Research of Japan.

The KHO staff also has close cooperation with the mainland universities in Norway. In other words, the observatory will be the core of an international and progressive research group.

The official opening ceremony starts with a presentation of the observatory at UNIS on Monday afternoon, thereafter the guests are transported to the observatory for the official opening ceremony.