The National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) has purchased its first operational radio telescope, valued at about N44 million, to aid in astronomy research and study in the country.
Dr. Bonaventure Okere, Director of the Centre for Basic Space Science and Astronomy (CBSSA), told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday.
Okere stated that the urge to obtain the telescope sprang from a desire to develop a critical mass of Astronomers who would play important roles in Africa’s emerging astronomy boom.
“Astronomy as a science seeks to explain everything we observe in the universe, from comets and planets in our solar system to distant galaxies and echoes of the Big Bang,” he said.
“By studying the universe beyond our own planet, we can learn where we came from, where we’re going, and how physics works in conditions that are impossible to replicate on Earth.”
“The universe is our laboratory in astronomy, and our quest has been to be a part of this universal laboratory, hence all the efforts to set up instruments to study and understand the universe in which we live.”
“The goal of establishing this Telescope is to provide a vector for socioeconomic development in Nigeria and across Africa, as well as to foster the next generation of radio astronomers.”
“NASRDA’s efforts have resulted in the successful acquisition and installation of Nigeria’s first functional 3.7m Radio Telescope at the CBSSA office in Nsukka, Enugu State.”
The telescope, according to Okere, costs 45,000 British Pounds.
He bemoaned the damage of the first 10m radio telescope erected by a team of Engineers and Scientists at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, and said that efforts had been made to obtain another.
According to him, the telescope was installed and calibrated for full performance by a team of Nigerian Engineers and Scientists.
“It can be used for astronomy education, research, and satellite tracking, among other things.”
“Our plan is to add three or more telescopes of the same size for interferometry, a measurement method that uses the phenomenon of wave interference,” Okere explained.
The Director stated that they received assistance from collaborators such as the Global Emerging Radio Astronomy Foundation (GERAF) Canada and the Dunlap Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics in Canada.
He mentioned North West University (NWU) in Potchefstroom, South Africa, the African Astronomical Society (AfAS), and a few people, including Astronomy students.
