Made in Sheffield

Ultracam

Dr Vik Dhillon is bringing astronomy in to the fast lane with Ultracam, the ultra-fast camera capable of capturing some of the most rapid astronomical events in the cosmos.

Ultracam, which can take up to 1,000 pictures a second in three different colours simultaneously, is the first UK-built instrument to be mounted on the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile.

The camera has opened up a radical new way of looking at the universe, and its amazing pictures have already led to the publication of over 30 research papers.

Full research story: Capturing the Universe 1000 pictures a second