In 1969, a sub-committee of the Astronomy, Space and Radio Board (ASRB) of the Science Research Council was established to examine the SRC’s future support for astronomy in the Northern Hemisphere, with a view to establishing a Northern Hemisphere Observatory (NHO).

One task of the Northern Hemisphere Review Committee (NHRC) was to obtain the views of senior British astronomers within the SRC (including staff of the RGO and ROE) and in universities on the proposed NHO. File RGO 147/3/2/1 appears to have been created in response to this.

Between 1969 and 1970, the committee had nine meetings, including some at RGO Herstmonceux. In these and ensuing complex discussions, there was much dispute about who should build and manage the NHO. Some critics, including Geoffrey Burbidge, argued that the task of managing its construction should not be given to the RGO. In particular, a proposal that the NHO should be run by a University-based ‘National Centre’ rather than the RGO caused great concern among RGO staff about the future of their scientific work. Many of the documents preserved in this sub-series reflect this anxiety.

The proposals for the NHO were considered by a review panel of the ASRB, which ultimately recommended that the RGO should have the prime responsibility for its construction. Site testing began in 1973 and the site chosen was La Palma. The observatory was named the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory (rather than the original title of ‘NHO’) and was ultimately established as a shared facility under an international agreement. It began operating in 1984 and was inaugurated in 1985.