BRICS Astronomy Magazine - Issue 1

JUNE 2022

Astronomical Institutions

in BRICS Countries 13TH BRICS SUMMIT Aspects of ASTRONOMY GADGETS

India

+

SETTING-UP A GLOBAL NETWORK OF TELESCOPES

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www.sutherlandplanetarium.co.za

SPACE AND ASTRONOMY

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GET IN TOUCH HOURS Monday - Saturday: Hourly shows (09:00-18:00) Sunday: 09:00-11:00 (Only long weekend and seasonal) SHOW FEES Daily: R80 per adult / R50 per child (under 12 years ) CONTACT US Phone/ WhatsApp: +27 78 603 0058 Email: info@sutherlandplanetarium.co.za

Walk among the stars and learn more about Sutherland’s incredibly clear night skies!

Corner of Piet Retief Street and Sarel Cilliers Street Sutherland, 6920 Northern Cape South Africa 2 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

FOREWORD

THE FUTURE IS WRITTEN IN THE

T

Stars

his year marks exactly 12 years since South Africa became a member of BRICS. The Federal Republic of Brazil, the Federation of Russia, the Republic of India, the People’s Republic of China, and the Republic of South Africa are members of the BRICS. These five countries have a tradition for excellence in Astronomy, with many scientists over the centuries making important contributions to this endeavour. Individually, each of the BRICS countries have unique telescope infrastructures, areas of scientific and technical strengths, expertise in instrumentation development, theoretical and computational excellence, industrial capabilities, and education and training opportunities.

This year also marks 8 years since the first BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Ministerial Meeting was held on 10 February 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. At this meeting, five science priority areas to be led by the respective BRICS member countries were endorsed and South Africa through my Department of Science and Innovation was given the responsibility to lead the astronomy priority area, and consequently chairs and provides the secretariat for the BRICS Astronomy Working Group (BAWG). I am pleased to report that the BRICS astronomy partnership is regarded as one of the most well-functioning working groups with tangible results achieved over the period of its existence and these include the following highlights which are worth mentioning: • A science strategic plan adopted in 2017, called the BRICS Astronomy Framework for Scientific Cooperation, that defines the priority areas of cooperation and the modalities of engagement; • The BRICS astronomy community has undertaken at least three (3) joint research projects to date funded through the BRICS STI Calls; • A networked community of astronomers that is working very well together and has held scientific symposia every year and this culminated in the development of the flagship project known as the BRICS Intelligent Telescope and Data Network (BITDN); and • An up-to-date website for the BAWG with all the proceedings of previous meetings http://www.bricsastronomy.org/ In addition to the above achievements, I am also delighted to introduce this important milestone of the inaugural BRICS Astronomy Magazine. The purpose of the magazine will be to communicate and promote the astronomy activities of the BRICS partnership to the astronomy communities, youth, general public and government officials in all the member countries – it will cover scientific projects being undertaken, outreach programmes and opportunities for students to get involved.

The magazine will be published twice a year and will be available in digital and hard copy format.

South Africa looks forward to working with BRICS partners to deepen cooperation in Astronomy and other fields, forge a closer and more productive partnerships to address common challenges and create a better future.

Dr BE Nzimande, MP

Minister of the Department of Higher Education, Science and Innovation June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE

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FOREWORD

COLLABORATION AND COOPERATION IS

T

Key

his year marks the 16th anniversary of cooperation among BRICS countries. The five countries have, in spite of the COVID-19 disruptions, carried forward the development momentum of BRICS cooperation and scored new progress in many fields. The BRICS space agency leaders have just signed an agreement on the cooperation on BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation in August 2021.

This could help deal with the challenges of global climate change, major disasters and environmental protection faced by mankind. The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) was also successfully launched this year, being the world’s second intergovernmental organisation dedicated to Radio Astronomy and contributing to building an ecosystem of science and technology involving fundamental research, computing, engineering, and skills for the next generation.

It is pleasant to witness that the first edition of the BRICS Astronomy Magazine will be released in 2022. I do hope this magazine could be a promising platform that can showcase the activities of the BRICS Astronomy working group. It not only can be of benefit for promoting the cooperation between BRICS member countries in the field of Astronomy, and enabling technologies through joint activities of government, universities, research institutions, and industry. But also it can be of benefit for developing astronomical sciences, generating new knowledge, training human capital, developing new technologies and applications, and improving public understanding of science.

Like President Xi Jinping noted during the 13th BRICS Summit, no matter what kind of difficulties we go through, BRICS cooperation will go far ahead on a steady and firm footing as long as we focus our ingenuity and energy on the same goal. BRICS countries should strengthen our cooperation in the spirit of mutual benefits. China looks forward to working with BRICS partners to deepen cooperation in all fields, forge a closer and more pragmatic partnership, address common challenges and create a better future.

Mr Chen Xiaodong

Ambassador of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Republic of South Africa

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EDITOR’S NOTE

THE INAUGURAL BRICS ASTRONOMY

T

Magazine

The power of Astronomy today cannot be overstated.

Without a doubt Astronomy is at the forefront of Science and Technology in an increasingly digitalised world. This area of speciality has the potential to answer fundamental questions on the origins of the universe and humanity’s place in it. It transcends boundaries that divide people, and speaks to all society. Astronomy also is a key driver of innovation and an important catalyst for scientific and technical development as well as empowering human capacity for the knowledge-based economy of the future.

At the very first BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial Meeting held in Cape Town, five priority areas were endorsed, to be led by the respective BRICS member countries.

South Africa was tasked with leading the key sector of Astronomy under the BRICS Astronomy Working Group.

The mission of the BRICS Astronomy Working Group is to promote cooperation between BRICS member countries in the field of Astronomy and enabling technologies through joint activities of government, universities, research institutions, and industry, as relevant, in order to develop astronomical sciences, generate new knowledge, train human capital, develop new technologies and applications, and improve public understanding of science.

The formation and implementation of cooperation activities across the groups follows the principles of voluntarism and openness, and each party participates at their own cost unless alternative sources of funding can be identified.

The Department of Science and Innovation of South Africa acts as the Secretariat to the Astronomy Working Group, and is responsible for: • Dissemination of information to the Astronomy Working Group using various media, including a website; • Organising annual meetings (providing a venue and meeting facilities, meeting agendas and relevant documents, coordinating experts), • Capturing and maintaining proceedings of the Working Group.

This publication will be produced to capture the progress, information and areas of interest among the BRICS countries focussing on Astronomy. We hope you enjoy this first edition of the publication as we look forward to producing more editions in the future.

Evans Manyonga Publishing Editor

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INSIDE

03. FOREWORD FROM THE MINISTER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND INNOVATION, DR BLADE NZIMANDE. 04. FOREWORD FROM THE AMBASSADOR OF THE EMBASSY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA IN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, MR CHEN XIAODONG. 08. THE OLDEST SCIENCE IN THE WORLD: A WALK THROUGH TIME

The Universe and its mysteries have always puzzled mankind. Every day we discover another piece of this puzzle. We do not have all the pieces of the puzzle, so putting it together is proving difficult.

11.ASPECTS OF ASTRONOMY GADGETS

Stargazing gadgets that give you a rare view of the sky above.

16. 13TH BRICS SUMMIT: INDIA

On September 9, 2021, India hosted the 13th BRICS Summit, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the summit was streamed live.

20. ASTRONOMICAL INSTITUTIONS IN BRICS COUNTRIES

Do you want to study Astrophysics or Astronomy? How deeply fascinated are you by celestial bodies? Read on to find out the big story.

26. SETTING-UP A GLOBAL NETWORK OF TELESCOPES: BRICS INTELLIGENT TELESCOPE AND DATA NETWORK

The Flagship Programme is a joint venture between BRICS countries that will initially use existing infrastructure in each country to build a network of telescopes, employing their respective strengths to explore and survey the cosmos.

30. DRIVING THE BITDN PROJECT THROUGH PASSION

Duduzile Kubheka is passionate about people and empowerment and development and aims to use her education and impact to inspire positive change in the education and the STI landscape.

32. SIDA TSOATSOAS PREMIERES AT THE IZIKO PLANETARIUM IN CAPE TOWN

The planetarium film Sida Tsoatsoas (Our Beginning) premiered at the Iziko Planetarium and Digital Dome in Cape Town.

36. THE RIO BRICS ASTRONOMY WORKSHOP AND WORKING GROUP MEETINGS

The 2019 Rio BRICS Astronomy Workshop and Workshop Group Meetings (BAWG) marked the fifth edition of the BAWG series, which happens annually since 2015.

42. BRICS REPORT ON ASTRONOMY AND IDEAS TO TAKE THE BRICS ASTRONOMY FORWARD 46. LEADING FROM THE FRONT

BRICS Astronomy Magazine sat down with Scientist and Research Astronomer, David Buckley (SAAO, South Africa) who shared his story and thoughts on the Astronomy sector in SA and BRICS Countries.

1 Bridgeway, Century City, Cape Town, South Africa, 7441 Tel: +27 21 830 5240 | Email: nadine@bricsmag.com www.bricsmag.com

PUBLISHING EDITOR IN CHIEF Evans Manyonga evans@reignmakers.co.za

CHAIRMAN

Madambi Rambuda

HEAD OF PARTNERSHIPS Jason Muna

SUB-EDITOR

Amanda Rhyn

CREATIVE CONCEPT ART DIRECTOR Annique Moonsamy

CONTRIBUTORS

Nadine Sims, Lusanda Tamesi, Evans Manyonga, Duduzile Kubheka, Ulisses Barres De Almeida, Bruno Vaz Castilho, Carlos Alexandre Wuensche, Muna Ado

PUBLISHED BY

Address: Tsiba House, 6 Spring Street, Woodstock, Cape Town Tel: +27 66 203 2927 | Email: evans@reignmakers.co.za www.reignmakers.co.za DISCLAIMER BRICS Astronomy magazine is produced by Science Stars (Pty) Ltd, A BRICS Astronomy Working Group partner.

Copyright 2021 Science Stars (Pty) Ltd. All rights Reserved.

No Part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or means, electronically or mechanically without prior permission.

• BY NADINE SIMS

The oldest Science in the world

A WALK THROUGH TIME The Universe and its mysteries have always puzzled mankind.

Everyday we have discovered another piece of this puzzle.

We do not have all the pieces of the puzzle, so putting it together is proving difficult.

T

hat is what astronomers do.

Help us figure out the mysteries of the universe and put this astronomical puzzle together.

For as long as humans have been able to, we’ve been looking up to the skies in awe.

The night sky is mesmerising, mystical, drawing us nearer and leaving us wanting to know more. The vastness can put things into perspective and explain the biggest existential questions that most people have.

What are we doing here?

What is our purpose? What is out there?

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The word Astronomy is derived from the Greek word ‘astron’, meaning star and it literally translates to ‘law of the stars’.

It is widely agreed that astronomy is the oldest science in the world. We do have astronomy to thank for many significant inventions that have made life better and as convenient as it is now.

Like clocks, calendars, Wi-Fi and many other important byproducts.

MEASURING TIME

Imagining a world without clocks, calendars and other

ways to measure time is difficult. Life as we know it revolves around time.

The first traces of time keeping date back to about 7000 years ago in the African deserts of Egypt, about 800km south of Cairo. The site, Nabta Playa, is a stone circle, similar but much older than Stonehenge.

It is believed that the people that built the structure did so to monitor the seasons.

The region is known for having seasonal monsoons, which could affect their food supply. Citizens and farmers relied on the Nile River flooding, to nourish their crops.

Therefore, monitoring the seasons of the year, would have been vital. To know when to plant and/or harvest would have ultimately aided in their food security and survival.

Julian calendar, proposed

by Julius Ceaser, was off by approximately 14 days, throwing out the date of the spring equinox and subsequently Easter.

A few thousands years after this, there is evidence that shows that astronomy and star-gazing started emerging across the world, in present day China, India, Egypt and many other regions. Their knowledge about the cosmos started to advance and many civilisations started recording their findings. China has a very rich and long astronomy history and is said to have been the first to be able to accurately predict eclipses.

The Pope then tasked the Jesuit Priests, the academic order of the Catholic Church (many of whom were astronomers and scientists at the time), to find out why and fix it.

On Friday, 25th October, 1582, the new calendar was adopted and is still in use today.

The Church has a long history of being quite involved and even funded a lot of astronomy research. This could be because the skies play a big part in religion. Looking at Christianity, when Jesus Christ was born, a bright star led the Three Kings/Wise Men to his location.

According to NASA, the ancient Babylonians were actually the first to (somewhat) accurately develop a calendar.

The 12 constellations of the Zodiac can also be attributed to them.

Their calendar was 12 months and based on the phases of the moon. The word ‘month’ is derived from the word ‘moon’, which is what a month was then, a lunar cycle of phases.

The Aztecs were also not very far off. They developed two calendars, one annual calendar with 365 days and one 52 year calendar, which acted as a century.

RELIGION AND RITUALS The Catholic Church played a vital role in astronomy, and the current calendar that is used world-wide today, the Gregorian calendar, is named after Pope Gregory XIII (1502-1585).

By the 16th Century, the

There are many other examples of the important role that celestial bodies play in religion and rituals.

One example is Ramaadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar year. The exact day that it commences is determined by the moon.

Ancient humans also had many rituals and superstitions, sometimes believing that certain celestial events were harbingers or omens of some kind. At times, the good kind and other times the bad kind.

The Bayeux Tapestry of the 11th Century shows King Harold II and other Englishmen fearfully looking up at Halley’s Comet before the Battle of Hastings, where they were defeated.

ANCIENT ASTRONOMY The ancient Greeks are said to have developed highly sophisticated methods to study Astronomy, which they treated as a branch of Mathematics.

However, Plato and Aristotle took a different approach, they were interested more in understanding the reasoning of the motions of the stars and other celestial bodies.

Ancient Greek Astronomers were also one of the first to calculate the Earth’s circumference fairly accurately. They did this by measuring the shadow cast of two objects at exactly the same time in two different locations.

Considering the distance between the two objects, they then calculated the circumference of the Earth to be about 46 250km, very close to the Earth’s actual circumference of 40075km.

CELESTIAL NAVIGATION

Before maps and way before GPS, sailing the high seas was not an easy feat. The skills you would have needed to navigate to your destination required an understanding of celestial bodies and this meant that Captains and Sailors of ships had to have a thorough understanding of the skies.

Celestial navigation is essentially using the moon, stars and the sun to determine your position and which direction you need to go in.

Travelling and transportation by sea were popular during the Middle Ages and by the 12th Century the compass was June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE

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invented in China, but many still relied on the heavens to find their way. It is believed that seafarers believed this way was more reliable.

To determine his ship’s location, Christopher Columbus used celestial navigation. He also used an Astrolabe, which is a tool that helps you measure latitude by determining the angle of the sun or a star.

A total of 58 navigational stars were also commonly used to calculate location, which was vital while travelling in unfamiliar seas. If you were in the Northern Hemisphere, you may also have used the North Star or Polaris, to determine where true North is. It is the only star in the night sky that does not move.

This is because its position is almost directly above the North Pole.

MODERN ASTRONOMY

The ancient Greek astronomer Aristarchus of Samos is thought to have been the first person who suggested a heliocentric system, but there are not many descriptions of his idea that has survived.

It was not until the 16th Century that this idea caught more steam. Before this, it was believed that Earth was at the centre of the universe.

Polish Astronomer, Nicolaus Copernicus, proposed the Heliocentric system. He said the Sun was at the centre of our solar system and that all planets, including Earth, orbit around it.

More important discoveries were to come with Galileo Galilei, but not everyone was on board.

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The Catholic Church banned his book and told him to denounce the Copernican theory of the Heliocentric system. Galileo also built his own Telescopes and some say popularised their use. He is one of the most notable and recognisable names in Science and Astronomy. In 1744 the Catholic Church unbanned his book Dialogue and in 1992 the Vatican formally apologised for condemning him.

George Lemaitre (1894 - 1966) also played an important role in modern Astronomy.

A Belgian Cosmologist, as well as a Catholic priest, he was the first to propose the Big Bang as the origin of our universe. He called it the ‘hypothesis of the primeval atom’ and then later went on to name it ‘the beginning of the world’.

The 20th Century blessed us with many brilliant, recognisable astrophysicists that popularised astronomy, propelling it into the mainstream.

The list is endless, from the likes of ALBERT EINSTEIN

(1879 - 1955) EDWIN HUBBLE (1889 - 1953) SIR FRED HOYLE (1915 - 2001) STEPHEN HAWKING (1942 - 2018) JOCELYN BELL (1943) NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON (1958)

to name merely few.

LOOKING FORWARD

The advances us as humans have made within the last two centuries alone are extraordinary. From stargazing and trying to map the stars with the naked eye, to large Telescopes with intricate features.

Currently we see about 1000 supernovae every year.

At the Rubin Observatory in Chile, which will be fully operational in about 2023, we will be able to see 1000 supernovae per night.

Astronomy is not only being used to decipher the wonders and origins of our universe, but is also being used for peace, as exhibited by the IAU Office of Astronomy for Development on their website. The example that is written about on the site is that of the island nation of Cyprus. The two communities, the GreekCypriots and the TurkishCypriots live separated from each other, in the South and in the North of the island. The Astronomy for Development organisation arranged several days of Astronomy activities, involving children from both sides. The activities took place at a community centre in the UN buffer zone between the North and the South of the island.The blog-post on the website explained, “this sense of goodwill extended to the adults involved. Teachers from both sides spoke about collaborating and are eager for future events”.

Bridging the gap between the divided nations was important, giving the children a safe space to interact, learn about Astronomy and build friendships. The next event is already being planned.

Over the last Century alone, Astronomy has taken huge strides. If this trajectory is anything to go by, the world will see many great and pioneering moments in the 21st Century, as our knowledge of the Universe expands, leaving us with many new puzzle pieces to decipher and put together.

Aspects of ASTRONOMY GADGETS Stargazing gadgets that give you a rare view of the sky above.

id you know that you can see a galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years away without the help of a telescope? Or even see Moon craters using binoculars?

It is incredible how you could look up into the sky and ask: “Is there an afterlife?”, “ Is what we are seeing half of what we are to observe?”

These questions triggered Galileo’s invention of an astronomical instrument (the Telescope) as means of observing the sky. This greater context triggered many factors that surround Astronomy, Religion, Science, and society.

Astronomy was not only a subject of a textbook it also included the making of binoculars out of bones and seeing certain stars during certain seasons. It served as the foundation of a map, calendar and a clock.

With the help of man-made instruments, ancient people tracked seasons and lunar crates, as well as predicted eclipses. Astronomy was embedded in their DNA. Today these instruments inspire us with beautiful pictures and promise answers to big questions. Security stars or should I say Astronomers practice what we may call an “exciting vigil of adventure,” using amazing astronomical instruments to help us understand more about celestial bodies.

We take a look at instruments to get your gear straight up and start embarking on the mysteries of the universe, galaxies and nebulas.

There are two major categories of astronomical instruments. The first category consists of all of the instruments used to observe celestial objects. Generally known as telescopes, these instruments can be used to see, photograph, or otherwise detect objects invisible to the naked eye.

The second category pertains to instruments employed for recording or standardizing the data provided by the observational instruments.

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#1

THE EYE

• The basic and most important instrument in astronomy is the human eye, a detector and mini telescope • A telescope is an observing instrument, but so is the human eye. Our eye’s pupil functions very similarly to a telescope’s aperture, making it the most superior and accurate telescope. The eye’s pupil is just like a telescope’s aperture.

• Image is formed in the retina.

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#2

OPTICAL TELESCOPE

• Distant stars and galaxies are too far away for us to reach.

We cannot go to them to study them.

In other words, we learn everything about distant stars and galaxies by observing the radiation they produce.

For better means of analysis, astronomers use optical telescopes for best.

• Optical telescopes observe visible light from space.

Small ones allow amateurs to view the night sky relatively easily.

• A picture is worth a thousand words they say, but wouldn’t it be a shame if you saw a cosmic object and not share it with the world?

• The Astrophotographer holds his camera directly up to the eyepiece of a telescope (a focal photography).

• The telescope will enlarge what you are seeing and capture it.

• It can zoom in or out on the star that you are focusing on.

#4

HD POCKET BINOCULARS

• 12 x 25 Telescope low light night Vision High power HD Pocket Binoculars.

#3

RED LED FLASHLIGHT

• One of the common tools of amateur astronomers is a red light used to see charts and telescope settings. The idea behind the use of red light is to maintain dark adaption for night-time viewing. Which is good for pointing out objects.

• By pointing a red LED flashlight at certain dual boxes or planets at night, you can make it easier for the people around you to see what you are talking about.

• Amateur astronomers can use it to observe star maps during astronomical observations, pilots during night flights to view navigation maps, and for general purposes.

• What is better than taking a spacewalk without leaving planet Earth other than using binoculars from the comfort of your home?

• Binoculars show you a wide field of view, making it easy to find your way around. A higher-power telescope magnifies only a tiny, hard-to locate bit of sky.

• They also show a view that’s right-side-up and straight in front of you, making it easy to see where you’re pointing.

• Binoculars are also relatively cheap, widely available, and a breeze to carry and store.

• A pair of binoculars designed specifically to look at the stars and block out light can transport you to the Universe.

#5

THE LEBOMBO BONE

• The Lebombo bone is a bone that was used as a Tally stick centuries ago to record or track lunar cycles.

•

Due to technological advancements, we use solar calendars.

#6

STAR WHEEL\PLANISPHERE

• A star wheel or Planisphere can be used to show you where a star is located in the sky • This tool allows you to find out which stars and constellations are visible in the sky at a given time and date.

• An imperative tool for amateur stargazers.

• Star wheels are designed to work at a specific latitude. For example, an accurate star wheel in India would not be useful in China.

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#7

MOON GLOBE

• A perfect astronomical globe for stargazers who want to embark on a celestial journey.

• The moon globe depicts all the major craters and mountains of the lunar.

In observing a celestial object through a conventional astronomical telescope, a large portion of the light collected by the object lies in the visible and near-visible spectrum. The use of astronomical telescopes has changed dramatically in the past decades. Radio telescopes are among them.

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#8

CHRONOGRAPH WATCH

• A Chronograph watch, is a watch that combines the traditional watch face with stopwatch capabilities.

• In addition to being used as a stopwatch or display watch, a Chronograph watch is a device used to track astronomical objects.

• Astronomical observations can be accurately recorded and permanently stored with a Chronograph watch.

• Time-related observations, such as a star transit, may be recorded on the chronograph, and these signals may be broken up throughout the otherwise continuous record of time.

#9

STAR-GAZING APP

• An all-in-one stargazing and sky guide app like SkyView can be very helpful. Through its screen and sensors, SkyView lets you see what’s up in the skies in an enhanced reality experience. It is updated to provide the most accurate picture of the sky.

• The app can display the track of an object in the sky and information on each of these objects, planets, and satellites using the AR viewfinder on Smartphone’s and tablets.

#10 A COMPUTER

• As much as research proves that the vital tool in astronomy is a telescope, computers are also as important.

• Computer technology is crucial to the observational astronomy process, as the large modern telescopes require computer control in order to operate and acquire the data they produce.

In any case, remote control and observation of orbiting telescopes like South Africa’s SKA Telescope are most evident.

• Computers are also essential for theoretical astronomy, where large mathematical models are constructed to try to understand the observations and these models can often only be solved using the largest computers.

“

According to astronomy.com networking and sharing ideas have never been so easy. Using the internet, astronomers can share, access, and analyze data. Tools that allow this are being developed throughout the world.

”

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13TH BRICS SUMMIT

India

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HIGHLIGHTS ● The BRICS leaders have to ensure that BRICS is more productive in the next 15 years. ● The role that BRICS countries can play in the post Covid-19 global recovery under the motto of: “Build-back resiliently, innovatively, credibility, and sustainability”. ● BRICS has had many achievements in the last one and a half decades.

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BRICS - an influential voice for emerging economies of the world Prime Minister Narendra Modi

n September 9, 2021, India hosted the 13th BRICS Summit, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the summit was streamed live. With the participation of other BRICS leaders -President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, President Vladimir Putin of Russia, President Xi Jinping of China, and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa attended the summit which was presided over by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Collectively, these nations account for 41% of the world’s population, 24% of global GDP, and 16% of global trade.

The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expressed appreciation for BRICS partner cooperation during the Indian Chairmanship this year. Prime Minister Modi granted the BRICS leaders the liberty to officially adopt an agenda under India’s tenure of chairmanship under the theme:BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS cooperation for continuity, consolidation, and consensus.

“These four C’s are in a way the fundamental principle of our BRICS partnership”, said Prime Minister Modi.

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Furthermore, Prime Minister Modi added that, despite the hiccups posed by Covid-19 more than 150 BRICS meetings and programs were organised, 20 out of that 150 were of ministerial level.

These meetings had paved the way and made efforts to further expand the BRICS agenda where BRICS achieved ‘several firsts’. The first-ever BRICS digital summit held was an innovation step with the help of technology where this format was stimulated by the BRICS water Ministers for the first time in November.

“Our lives are fundamentally based upon technology and science”, said Prime Minister Modi.

As a result, BRICS is creating multilateral systems and strengthening their cooperation on counterterrorism. On their counterterrorism agreement, the BRICS space agencies also agreed on the constellation of remote sensing satellites between them.

On the 18th of August, BRICS space agency leaders signed an agreement of cooperation on Remote Sensing Satellite

Constellation during a virtual meeting. According to Sanjay Bhattacharya - secretary to the government of India in the Ministry of External Affairs, the agreement would help boost collaboration between the BRICS countries in the use of outer space data and application in research and development of global climate change, food and agriculture security, disaster management, and water supply.

The contributing satellites will be the CBERS-4 satellite from Brazil and China, the Kanopus-V satellite from Russia, the Resourcesat-2 and 2A satellites from India, and the GF-6 and ZY-3/02 satellite from China. These satellites will send data to ground stations located in Cuiaba - Brazil, Moscow Region in Russia, Shadnagar-Hyderabad in India, Sanya in China, and Hartebeesthoek in South Africa.

In an article published by the Geospatial World, the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA) says that such an adjustment could lead to cooperation among BRICS space agencies for building a new constellation of remote sensing satellites and data-sharing mechanisms based on the use of existing satellites from BRICS space agencies.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS TO THE NEW DELHI DECLARATION With BRICS celebrating fifteen years since its inception, thus the theme of India is BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS cooperation for continuity, consolidation, and consensus.

Leaders of BRICS signed a declaration in New Dehli pledging support for initiatives to strengthen business cooperation between the countries.

On the declaration, a preamble was signed where agreements were accepted on consolidation and stocktaking,

DISCUSSIONS HELD AT THE 13TH BRICS SUMMIT ● First BRICS health summit ● First BRICS ministerial joint summit on multilateral reforms ● BRICS counter-terrorism action plan (Afghanistan) ● An agreement on cooperation in the field of remote-sensing satellites ● A Virtual BRICS vaccine research and development centre ● BRICS alliance on green tourism.

challenges on global health and COVID-19, a section on strengthening and reforming the multilateral system, Peace, Security and CounterTerrorism cooperation, sustainable development and innovation means to achieve it, economic and financial cooperation for sustainable development and more.

According to the New Delhi Declaration, the tangible contribution to achieving the 2030 Agenda will come from the application of space technologies for peaceful purposes. The leaders

commended the signing of the agreement amongst BRICS Space Agencies on BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation.

The grouping approved the establishment of a BRICS Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) Cooperation agreement to bring together researchers to tackle emerging and new challenges. They also acknowledged the progress that the BRICS STI Steering Committee has achieved.

Furthermore, BRICS leaders noted that the Covid-19 pandemic had changed the learning curriculum and are in agreement about the importance of leveraging digital solutions to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education, while enhancing research and academic collaboration.

SIDEBAR OF BRICS SPACE AGENCIES ● Brazilian Space Agency (AE) ● Russia’s state space corporation Roscosmos (ROSCOSMOS) ● Indian Space Research Administration (ISRO) ● China National Space Administration (CNSA) ● South African National Space Agency (SANSA)

As part of its commitment to increasing economic and social development, the grouping recognizes the value of agricultural and rural revitalisation, thus welcoming the BRICS Agriculture Information Exchange System and the BRICS Agricultural Research Platform, as well as adopting the Action Plan for this year through 2024.

ON AFGHANISTAN As a way to maintain stability, peace, and order in Afghanistan, leaders from BRICS called for violence to be avoided and for mediation by an inclusive intraAfghan dialogue. Their top priorities included addressing humanitarian needs and enforcing human rights, especially those of women and children.

June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 19

• BY LUSANDA TAMESI

Astronomical Institutions IN BRICS COUNTRIES Do you want to study Astrophysics or Astronomy?

How deeply fascinated are you by celestial bodies? Check out what you need to know.

H

ave you ever wondered how gravity affects everything? What happens during a Supernova explosion? Do you want to break the limits of space exploration? If you are curious about the answers to these questions please pay attention.

Being a professional in Astronomy alone is not enough, an individuals’ passion for 20 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

Do you have ?

An inquisitive mind ?

Interest in Mathematics, Computing and Physics ?

Patience ?

learning about this field is responsible for most of it.

Usually, people assume that Astronomy and Astrophysics are merely the product of Mathematics and Physics alone but have you thought about who writes research proposals? The qualification in Astronomy requires strong analytical skills, good writing ability, and the capability of debating openly.

Qualif icati

ons availab

* In this and future issues of the Magazine, we will highlight some of the institutions within BRICS where astronomy research is happening.

Astrophysicists interpret astronomical data gathered by astronomers in order to find out what celestial objects are and why they function.

Astronomers admire the beauty of starry skies.

To pursue a qualification in the field of Astronomy, you need, calculus, algebra and statistics. Where though, would you want to study Astronomy in BRICS countries?

le:

• Bac helor o f Scien ce (BSc in Phy sics, M ) degre athem e Engine a t i c s , and ering • Deg ree in A stroph Astron ysics, omy • Deg ree in C omput (MPhy ational s) physic s • Deg ree in P hysics Meteo with rology ( B S c ) • Deg ree in A stroph ysics (M Phys)

A few of the best Institutions for studying Astronomy and related science can be found below:

INSTITUTIONS FOR ASTRONOMY RESEARCH AND TRAINING IN BRICS COUNTRIES • The University of Sao Paulo • The Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul • M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University • Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology • Indian Institute of Astrophysics

• • • • • • • •

Indian Institute of Science Peking University Tsinghua University University of Science and Technology of China University of Cape Town University of Witwatersrand University of Pretoria University of Western Cape

June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 21

of exchange programs, the Student Program Agreement or through diplomatic courtesies. Their language of instruction is Portuguese.

BRAZIL

#1

For more information about the University visit info@ercis.org

THE FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF RIO GRANDE DO SUL (BRAZIL)

RANKINGS • 201-250TH WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022 • 48TH IMPACT RANKINGS 2022 • 91-100TH WORLD REPUTATION 2020 • 107 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE

The University of São Paulo (USP) is a large and prestigious Brazilian research institution. It is one of the most elite universities in the country. Founded in 1934, the institution is one of the top higher education and research institutions in Brazil.

It is a free public university that publishes approximately 50 research papers a day.

Having developed new departments, Sao Paulo University is now one of Latin America’s largest institutions of higher education.

For its activities, the USP has campuses spread in São Paulo, Bauru, Lorena, Piracicaba, Pirassununga, Ribeirão Preto, and two in São Carlos. Foreign students enter the university by means 22 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

RANKINGS • 141 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 447 IN BEST GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES • 8TH LATIN AMERICA RANKINGS 2021

The Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul known as Universidade Federal do Rio Grande Sul ( URFGS) is a Brazilian public research university established in 1895 based in Porto Alegre. More than 2500 professors at the university have authored a significant number of scientific publications. The university is one of the largest and best rated in Brazil.

As a Brazilian public Federal institution, students do not pay tuition fees to enrol in courses offered by the university. Besides delivering high-quality education, this research institution has developed urban infrastructure and is an accredited institution.

RUSSIA

#2

In general, Russians are known for their expertise in Engineering, but in the study of science, they stay on top of the charts with their outstanding performances in Engineering, Physics, Medicine, and Psychology.

By offering some of the best, most modern laboratories, observatories, and research centres in the world, these universities attracts international students. It also trains Mathematicians, Physicists, Chemists, Engineers, and other creative professionals.

M.V. LOMONOSOV MOSCOW STATE UNIVERSITY (RUSSIA, MOSCOW) RANKINGS • 79 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 78 IN QS WORLD UNIVERSITIES 2022 • 93 ACADEMIC RANKINGS OF WORLD UNIVERSITIES 2020

This University is one of the top public universities in Moscow, Russia. It was named after a Russian polymath, a scientist, and a writer Mikhail Lomonosov (the first to discover the law of mass conservation in 1760).

Since English is the commonly used language of instruction here, it is not necessary for an individual to know Russian. M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University was established in 1755 following a tradition of offering worldclass education.

MOSCOW INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS AND TECHNOLOGY RANKINGS • 201 WORLD UNIVESITY RANKINGS 2021 • 281 QS WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS • 200 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 385 IN BEST GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES

The Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, informally known as PhysTech is a public research university located in Moscow, Russia. It was established in 1951. It is one of Russia’s leading universities in the areas of physics and technology. The PhysTech System developed by this institution combines engineering disciplines, fundamental science, and student research to train specialists.

INDIA

#3

THE INDIAN INSTITUTE OF ASTROPHYSICS (IIA) RANKINGS • 34TH WORLD UNIVERSITIES 2021 • 26 RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS 2021 • 8TH IN INDIA • RANKS 112TH IN PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY IN BRICS COUNTRIES

The DST-funded research institute specialises in Astronomy, Astrophysics, and related areas of Physics.

The Indian Institute of Astrophysics is an educational institution established in 1786. IIA’s primary focus is astronomy and astrophysics research.

It is widely recognized as one of the best research institutes in the country.

The institute maintains a network of laboratories and observatories in India, including the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory, the Vainu Bappu Observatory, Gauribidanur Radio Observatory, and the Indian Astronomical Observatory.

June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 23

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE (IISC) RANKINGS • 11 WORLDWIDE OF CITATION PER FACULTY (2014 & 2015) • 186 IN QS GLOBAL WORLD RANKINGS 2022

Indian Institute of Science is a public university for scientific research and higher education located in Bangalore, India established in 1909. It is also locally known as the “Tata Institute”.

CHINA

#4

PEKING UNIVERSITY (BEIJING) RANKINGS

• 50 BEST IN UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 18 QS WORLD RANKING 2022 • 51 IN BEST GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES

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Peking University is a major research university in Beijing, China, and a member of the elite C9 League of Chinese universities.

Founded in 1898, Peking University was originally known as the Imperial University of Peking. The institution is one of the most exclusive institutions for Astronomy out of all the colleges and universities surveyed for the Best Astronomy Universities in the World.

It is known for educating some of the most prominent Chinese public figures including Mao Zedong. As the university continues to serve information about the art at the Museum of University history students get to have an experience of history.

Acceptance rate- 0.91% Graduate rate- 97%

TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY (BEIJING) RANKINGS • 143 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 28 IN BEST GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES • 1 TOP UNIVERSITY IN CHINA • 17 IN QS GLOBAL WORLD RANKINGS

In Forbes magazine’s review of the world’s most beautiful universities, this university was ranked as one of the top in the list.

When it comes to China’s educational facilities, it’s the best in the world as a superpower, a driver of global economic growth, and a global economic booster.

Established in 1911, China’s Tsinghua University is one of the most prestigious universities in the world and is the number one choice of students. The university receives an overwhelmingly large number of applications each year, and as a result, only has an acceptance rate of 2%.

UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF CHINA (USTC) RANKINGS • 149 IN BEST UNIVERSITIES FOR SPACE SCIENCE • 98 IN QS WORLD RANKINGS • 124 IN BEST GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES

Regarded as the “Cradle of Scientific Elites”, The University of Science and Technology of China is a public higher education institution founded in Beijing in September 1958 in China.

The university campus is of urban type and is located in the vicinity of Hefei.

The University’s goal is to safeguard high-quality science and technology personnel necessary to help develop the national economy as well as to educate and support students.

This is the only university in South Africa that offers a full taught undergraduate programmes in Astrophysics.

# 5 SOUTH AFRICA UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN RANKINGS • 183RD WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022 • 201-250 IN PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY

South Africa’s oldest university, University of Cape Town was founded in 1829 as the South African College, is located in Cape Town.

According to the QS World University Rankings for 2021, UCT ranked highest in the areas of Science, Mathematics, and Engineering across 11 subjects.

Research done by its researchers helps create African-based solutions to global issues, such as fighting climate change, urbanisation, education, and health problems.

UNIVERSITY OF WITWATERSRAND RANKINGS • 424 WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022 • 181-190 GRADUATE EMPLOYABILITY RANKINGS • 40 BRICS RANKINGS • 9 IN AFRICA (ASTRONOMY AND PHYSICS) • 5 IN SOUTH AFRICA (ASTRONOMY AND PHYSICS)

Founded in 1896 as The South African School of Mines in Kimberley, Wits is the third oldest South African University. Wits traces its roots from the early 1800’s with a unique collection of astronomy wonders.

It is committed to academic and excellent research whilst contributing to global knowledge. An outreach program, which includes a planetarium, is part of the teaching programme at this public institution, which teaches close to 3000 students annually.

“

According to a 1991 research conducted by the National Research Council (the operating arm of the United States National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine), a school program ranging from astronomy to related activities has been shown to increase pupils’ interest in science and technology careers as well as their ability to stay current with scientific discoveries. Science and Technology are used to entice from around the world with financial red carpets rolled out in some.

”

If a person wishes to pursue a career in astrophysics or astronomy the best route would be to first obtain BSc qualification.

UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA RANKINGS • 535 WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022 • 8 IN AFRICA • 161 BRICS

The University of Pretoria was founded in 1908 as the Transvaal University. This public institution has an astrophysics research group that was formed in January 2018.

Its primary focus is in radio astronomy, biophysics, theoretical physics, and more.

UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN CAPE RANKINGS • 633 WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022 • 23RD IN AFRICA • 242 IN BRICS RANKINGS

The University of Western Cape also known as Bush College was founded in 1960 as a university for Coloured people only. From as early as 2008 this research rich environment has built up a strong presence in astronomy.

The university’s AstroGroup is recognised internationally for its extensive research in astronomy and the role it plays in the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project in Sutherland, near Carnavon Northern Cape.

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SETTING-UP A GLOBAL NETWORK OF TELESCOPES

Brics Intelligent Telescope and Data Network “The idea of the Flagship Programme was to develop something that would leverage the existing and future facilities that BRICS countries have or have access to, in particular to develop a really internationally competitive Astronomy programme.”

• BY NADINE SIMS

he Flagship Programme is a joint venture between BRICS countries that will initially use existing infrastructure in each country to build a network of telescopes, employing their respective strengths to explore and survey the cosmos.

The concept of the BRICS Intelligent Telescope and Data Network (BITDN), as it is known, was first proposed in 2017 at an annual 26 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

BRICS Astronomy Working Group (BAWG) meeting.

“The idea of the Flagship Programme was to develop something that would leverage the existing and future facilities that BRICS countries have or have access to. In particular to develop a really internationally competitive astronomy programme.” David Buckley from the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) explains.

The BRICS Astronomy Working Group first meeting was in 2015, after initial discussions about ways to promote Science and Technology in each country. Astronomy then quickly emerged as one of the main themes, which has now developed into a fullyfledged BRICS Astronomy programme, with the working group meeting annually.

It has since morphed into a transcontinental Flagship

Project - the BRICS Intelligent Telescope and Data Network.

At the beginning, when the programme was adopted by the working group and the secretariat of South Africa, they were told to think big and out of the box.

“This is what led to what some people might think of as an outlandishly ambitious programme. But this is something that we believe, certainly in this current proposal, is something that is fully realisable with what we consider to be a relatively modest amount of investment,” Buckley explains.

After the first discussions about the proposed Flagship project, an announcement call was made in early 2018 and 18 proposals were discussed at that year’s meeting in South Africa.

The concept notes were reviewed and it was decided that as far as possible, proposals where there was a common theme, would be combined into a bigger proposal.

“What came out of that were three common themes.

“

One of them was on transient follow-up and transient astronomy. The other was on big data and big compute infrastructure in the era of large surveys like SKA and LSST. The last one was a cosmology-related study of neutral hydrogen 21centimetre.”

The three proposals were developed and then presented at the 2019 annual BAWG meeting, in Rio de Janeiro.

Buckley explained that two of the three were then combined and merged into one proposal.

“It was already clearly apparent that there were excellent synergies between those two proposals and in fact, both talked to different aspects of those proposals, so it made imminent sense to combine them. And that’s what the final proposal we have on the table now represents,” he said.

One of the most important aspects of a project of this magnitude is the potential opportunities and the socioeconomic effects. In the current proposal, that can be found on the BAWG website, there is support for

human capacity development of young researchers and students. This includes funding of post-doctoral fellowships, scholarships and co-supervision with other BRICS countries.

“Of course the technical collaboration opportunities are also quite apparent, because hardware and instrumentation forms one important leg of this proposal, there is excellent potential for engineers, software developers, and instrument makers to collaborate and work together.”

Equally as important are the scientific reverberations, which will surely be felt for generations to come. For instance, the big astronomy survey programme that the working group has an interest in leveraging is the Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), which is due to start it 10 year optical sky survey in 2024.

“It will conduct a 10 yearsurvey of the Southern Sky, and it will be the deepest and most complete survey ever undertaken,” explained Buckley.

Setting up this network and bringing their resources together could lead to great scientific advancement, though an undertaking of this size is not without its challenge.

”

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The other major large project that could potentially be leveraged is the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), in South Africa and in Australia.

The radio telescope is due to begin operations in approximately six years and will be the largest and most technologically advanced instrument of its kind.

Setting up this network and bringing resources together could lead to great scientific advancement, though an undertaking of this size is not without its challenge.

“The telescopes that we jointly have or that we have within our countries are quite a heterogeneous collection of telescopes of different ages and capabilities. Nonetheless, our experience in South Africa has shown it is a tractable problem.”

Also, a challenge that is central to the Flagship Project is to efficiently process large data sets and subsequently extract important information.

As the BITDN proposal explains, developing systems that can effectively analyse vast amounts of data is

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an integral part of how we approach science and technology within the 21st century.

“It should also be clear that it would have a huge impact on aspects like human capacity development, development of young researchers within our countries and of course, the alignment with developments of The Fourth Industrial Revolution paradigm, for example, machine learning and artificial intelligence,” he says.

The project will be implemented in a phased approach with the potential to expand. The first phase and initial focus will be on networking the existing facilities in each region, for a more efficient response to transient alerts and survey follow-up science.

Fortunately, SAAO does have some experience in this, with their new initiative that started in 2021.

The plan is to essentially turn their existing Sutherland observatory site into an integrated intelligent machine for transient and survey follow-up. Buckley explained

that this project is going very successfully and the idea is that it would expand within this programme to be something similar within all of the BRICS countries.

The second phase would primarily be paying attention to the development of new infrastructure. This is to aid in wider, deeper and faster transient detection facilities.

A great deal of help in this phase will be coming from China and Russia.

“So already, telescope design work has begun by the two respective groups. One of the initial things we could do with our programme would be to do some design trade-off studies. To work together on looking for the potentials for designs and so on and maybe also into detector technology as well,” Buckley notes.

The second phase also brings with it the prospect of being able to survey and monitor the sky, in its entirety and continuously for approximately an hour each day, ultimately rendering this global network of optical telescopes unique today.

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DRIVING THE BITDN PROJECT

Through Passion

Kubheka is passionate about people empowerment and development and aims to use her education and impact to inspire positive change in the education and the STI landscape.

uduzile Kubheka is a BSc Biotechnology graduate from the University of Pretoria and recently completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Information Technology Management, majoring in Project Management. She is also a final year student for LLB at UNISA. 30 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

Kubheka was previously employed at the NRFSAASTA in the capacity of Project Administrator for the EU Commission RRING 2020 project.

Prior to that she was a participant in the DSISAASTA National Youth Service Program where she was first introduced to the organisation as a volunteer.

She worked as a researcher and administrator and played a key role in the running of the Horizon Europe and EU Funded RRING H2020 Project for the National Research Foundation (NRF), based at the SAASTA business unit. This project was aimed at promoting Responsible Research and Innovation whilst addressing key global sustainability and social justice issues, e.g.,

Agenda 2030, the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the RRI principles, namely, Gender Equality, Public Engagement, Open Access, Ethics and Integrity.

Kubheka has experience in project development and management as well as in the coordination of activities between project partners in South Africa and in various international countries including Ireland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Lithuania, USA, Egypt, Bolivia, India, SubSaharan Africa, Japan, UK, etc. She has handled communication with all these stakeholders, including highlevel stakeholders in the respective partner countries as well as in South Africa, these include members of government, decision makers, policymakers, heads of organisations, and national committees. She has worked with a wide range of stakeholders, which extended to researchers, research funding organisations, research performing organisations, civil society organisations, business and industry.

also coordinated and managed a team of South African stakeholders in consultations and in the drafting of recommendations to UNESCO regarding the state of STI landscape in the country.

In addition, she has worked on the societal benefits of programs where she was involved in science outreach programs such as the National Science Week, science festivals and exhibitions and science centres in capacity building programs and Programmatic Support.

Her role as the BITDN Project Coordinator entails but is not limited to assisting in the development of the project by organizing and coordinating science activities on a national as well as international level.

She is responsible for the coordination of activities between project partners in South Africa and in all BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China), the development and management of societal benefits aspects of the programme, communication with high-level stakeholders in all BRICS countries as well as proposal and report writing.

She also serves the role of assisting in the development of the BRICS Astronomy website, social media platforms, BRICS Astronomy Magazine, management of the project and organization of workshops/meetings.

She has also been involved in processes of governance and science collaboration, both nationally and internationally, this included policy review and analysis, the mapping of The Recommendations for Science and Scientific Researchers text against the Sustainable Development Goals using the principles of Responsible Research and Innovation and has June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 31

SIDA TSOATSOAS PREM Iziko Planetarium In Cape Town New planetarium film explores indigenous star-lore 32 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

MIERES AT THE

he planetarium film Sida Tsoatsoas (Our Beginning) premiered on Monday 6 December 2021 at the Iziko Planetarium and Digital Dome in Cape Town.

The 13-minute film uses a combination of live-action and animation, a first for South Africa.

The full-dome film is a not-for-profit production that will be made available internationally to the network of 4000 planteria worldwide.

It is narrated in Afrikaans and Nama and also has English subtitles. Co-producer Kerry Jones explains that the subtitles can easily be altered, making it ideal for an international audience.

“Not many planetaria films have more than one language, let alone subtitles. It just shows that Africa can and is also setting trends,” said Jones.

The story follows the Khomani community descendants, located in the Northern part of the Kalahari, as they tell the story about the origins of the Sun. It is the first of its kind to explore African indigenous starlore, in this format.

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Jones explained that Southern Africa has many minority languages that are endangered and could potentially become extinct.

“They are running the risk of losing these languages and that’s why this is an amazing way to bring it to the public in this way.”

The beautiful traditional songs that can be heard in the background were recorded on site, in a makeshift studio the team put together in the Kalahari.

“There were grandmothers and grandfathers singing the songs, with their grandchildren. So the songs are all really very special.”

Jones explained that technically the production was quite challenging, mainly due to time and budget constraints, but was well worth it. The film was produced in 3 months, with a budget of R800 000 ($50 000).

It was also important that the community themselves have access to the film and a flat version of the film has been created and distributed to members of the community.

Co-producer Daniel Cunnama said, “It was a really special experience to understand their relation to the stars, starlore and Earth and it was a privilege to be let in, in that way.”

He explained that the movie was also meant to inspire and excite people about their own relationship with the stars.

“The traditional way to engage people in science is going to the classroom and speaking about the planets.

With that, there is no soul, and it is usually done from a Western perspective,” he said.

He hopes this is only the beginning of much more when it comes to indigenous knowledge and hopes they can continue to engage, record and share.

The production was supported by an array of entities, such as The Department of Science and Innovation, National Arts Council, African Planetarium Association, to name a few.

The movie also created 29 jobs within the rural community.

Currently, Sida Tsoatsoas is showing at the Iziko Planetarium and Digital Dome and will hopefully also be screened in Bloemfontein and Sutherland soon.

“

It was a really special experience to understand their relation to the stars, starlore and earth and it was a privilege to be let in, in that way.

”

- Co-producer Daniel Cunnama

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THE RIO BRICS ASTRONOMY Workshop and Working Group Meetings

Laying the foundation for a BRICS Telescope Network • BY ULISSES BARRES DE ALMEIDA - BRAZILIAN CENTER FOR PHYSICS RESEARCH BRUNO VAZ CASTILHO - NATIONAL LABORATORY OF ASTROPHYSICS CARLOS ALEXANDRE WUENSCHE - NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR SPACE RESEARCH

he 2019 Rio BRICS Astronomy Workshop and Working Group Meetings (BAWG) marked the fifth edition of the BAWG series, which happens annually since 2015. It was the first edition in Brazil, taking place between September 29th and October 2nd, at the Brazilian Center for Physics Research (CBPF), and consisted of a two-day science workshop, followed by the BAWG meeting of BRICS delegates.

The event was chaired by the National Laboratory of Astrophysics (LNA), contact point for the Brazilian delegation at BAWG. The workshop has demonstrated the status of maturity of the BRICS collaboration on astrophysics and the role and impact that these countries together can have on world science.

In his welcoming address, the director of CBPF, Dr.Ronald Shellard, conveyed his recognition of the crucial role to be played by BRICS multilateral cooperation in physics and astrophysics, unique among the multiple avenues of global collaboration in these strongly internationalized fields of science. The opening address was given by Mr. Takalani Nemaungani, chair to the BRICS Astronomy Working Group, who reminded participants of the steps that led to the preparation of the flagship proposals by the participating scientists.

The final goal of the Rio Meeting was to achieve a unified flagship project to be jointly pursued by the BAWG. Over the years, the five countries have continually engaged to establish a solid, multi-lateral cooperation agenda in astronomy, one of the thematic areas chosen as priority for BRICS cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).

BRUNO VAZ CASTILHO

CARLOS ALEXANDRE WUENSCHE

ULISSES BARRES DE ALMEIDA June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 37

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Behind this is the recognition that Astronomy, as an area of scientific research constantly at the forefront of technological development and innovation, holds a great potential of societal impact, including in human capacity building.

Being an inherently multinational field, Astronomy is a most natural avenue for fostering international cooperation, supported by one of the bestintegrated global research communities amongst all sciences.

Numerous are the international projects in Astronomy in which two or more BRICS countries already cooperate, and we could cite the Square Kilometer Array Observatory (SKAO) as a prime example, where China, India and South Africa collaborate with 12 other countries to build the largest and most powerful radio observatory in history.

The vast global coverage of the BRICS countries, geographically spread across the full range of latitudes and longitudes, and enclosing an enormous land area, make them particularly well-suited astronomical partners.

Together they can achieve a continuous observational capability of the entire sky, for the surveying and monitoring of all kinds of celestial phenomena. Likewise, their diversity makes up for limitless options of suitable astronomical sites in which to install instrumentation, without the need to look 40 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

beyond their collective borders.

The BRICS countries would therefore be uniquely placed to construct a world-class network of astronomical observatories, capable of establishing itself among the principal global facilities in terms of observing power and scientific discovery potential. Operating as a single observatory with sites spread over the five countries, thanks to software-level integration of operations and data products, the network could become a stable infrastructure for fostering permanent cooperation, innovation and training within the Bloc, in a context of breakthrough science, and with direct impact in strategic areas such as computing and engineering.

Such was the rationale behind the organization of the 2019 Rio BRICS Astronomy Workshop, whose scientific discussions centered around the topic of multiwavelength and multi-messenger astronomy.

This is a leading and rapidly expanding topic in contemporary Astrophysics research, and one which demands unique astronomical infrastructures with great surveying and monitoring capability of the entire sky, such as a BRICS-wide telescope network could provide. Research in this area is motivated by some of the most important discoveries of the last decade, such as the detection of gravitational waves and very-high-energy

cosmic neutrinos , and holds the key to the study of the most energetic and violent astrophysical phenomena, crucial to the understanding of the evolution and constituents of the Universe.

The two-day workshop featured around 20 presentations by researchers from the four countries present (India attended in remote format), which showcased the various aspects of multiwavelength and multi-messenger research in which the different teams are involved. Several talks also focused on presenting the current and planned astronomical infrastructure and observatory facilities from the various countries.

The principal aim was to discuss and set out a strategy to promote integration and multilateral collaboration among the BRICS countries, and the contributions served as a basis for the discussions that followed, on the potential for the establishment of a BRICS-wide optical telescope network for the continuous monitoring and surveying of the entire sky.

This network should be built with the use of existing facilities, through integration of the telescope operations and resulting datasets.

By bringing together the scientific communities and the available observational and data infrastructures from the five countries, the group will establish novel research collaborations and projects at the frontier of knowledge.

This first phase will effectively work as a pathfinder for the

“

Astronomy, as an area of scientific research constantly at the forefront of technological development and innovation, holds a great potential of societal impact, including in human capacity building. following step, that is, the building and deployment of dedicated instrumentation, tailor-made to compose a unique global network of optical telescopes fully operated by the BRICS. Thanks to its strong links to aspects of high-performance computing and data science, both at the core of the fourth Industrial Revolution, the project is also expected to have important impact beyond the fields of Astronomy and Astrophysics, with positive consequences for technological development, innovation and education in the participating countries.

The Rio Meeting served to consolidate towards such a unified proposal the several years of preparations and growing collaboration that was promoted by the BRICS Astronomy Working Group.

The ensuing meeting of the BRICS delegates present in Rio formally approved the proposal for a Flagship Project to build the BRICS Intelligent Telescope and Data Network (BITDN) . The project is to be led by Dr. David Buckley, from South Africa, with the contribution of co-PIs from each BRICS country. It was finally presented to the BRICS

STI Framework Programme last year.

To highlight and advertise the progress in coordinated multi-lateral collaboration that the past five years of BAWG activities have succeeded to promote among the BRICS countries, and to firmly document the proposal and the science behind BITDN, the scientific contributions and discussions from the Rio Meeting were collected in a special volume published in the Annals of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences . It constitutes the first-ever scientific volume exclusively dedicated to BRICS Astronomy.

The publication, which is fully open-access, aims to remain as a reference of the scientific activities within the BRICS Astronomy Working Group, and presents a unique and wide perspective into the current status of BRICS activities in astronomy and of the existing multi-lateral cooperation in the field.

We hope it will further promote and contribute to the general understanding of the potential of BRICS STI cooperation in this area.

In our vision as organizers, the workshop has fulfilled its objectives, contributing to strengthening the

”

relationships between the BRICS and their scientific communities. We hope that the steps taken until now will open doors for further fruitful collaborations among the BRICS, not only in Astronomy, but also in other fields of research, exploiting the numerous potential synergies of the Bloc.

The BRICS countries constitute a widely heterogeneous ensemble of countries, with unique historical backgrounds, and inserted in particular geopolitical contexts across the world. Nevetheless, they form a congruent set with respect to the common challenges they face as emerging economies and their potential to grow into leading regional and global powers. The setting of joint and ambitious goals in STI, especially through stable, multi-disciplinary and widescope decentralized research infrastructures such as the BITDN, provide the ideal framework for long-term and effective scientific and technological cooperation, that reverts into further strengthening of our ties, and mutually-beneficial development for the decades ahead.

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BRICS REPORT ON ASTRONOMY AND IDEAS TO TAKE THE

BRICS Astronomy Forward 1. BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) share common aspirations for scientific and technological development, and for the growth of human capital resources. Astronomy captures the imagination of people everywhere, and touches a fundamental human desire to understand the universe that surrounds us, and our place in it. It provides an ideal way to attract young learners into scientific and technical studies, developing the human capacity for the knowledge-based economy of the future. Its appeal transcends boundaries that divide peoples and speaks to all members of our societies. The goal of the BRICS Astronomy Working Group (BAWG) is to exploit these basic strengths for the mutual betterment of our general populaces.

The BRICS Astronomy Workshop is held under the auspices of the BWAG and provides a platform for BRICS 42 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

member countries to engage on scientific and technological discussions related to research, development and practice in astronomy, and to work on project proposals for promoting BRICS cooperation in astronomy.

The BRICS Astronomy Working Group (BAWG) is composed of government officials (or their designated representatives) supported by the focal points on astronomy and experts from BRICS member countries.

Technology and Innovation (STI) Ministerial Meeting which was held in Cape Town on 10 February 2014, five priority areas to be led by the respective BRICS member countries were endorsed.

South Africa was given the responsibility to lead the astronomy priority area, and consequently chairs and provides the secretariat for the BAWG.

The Department of Science and Innovation of South Africa acts as the secretariat to The mission of the BAWG is to the BAWG and is responsible promote cooperation between for: BRICS member countries • Dissemination of in the field of astronomy information to the BAWG and enabling technologies, using various media, through joint activities of including a website; government, universities, • Organising annual research institutions, and meetings – organising industry, as relevant, in order a venue and meeting to develop astronomical facilities, meeting agendas sciences, generate new and relevant documents, knowledge, train human as well as coordinating capital, develop new experts to develop topics of technologies and applications, common interest; and and improve public • Capturing proceedings of understanding of science. the BAWG. At the first BRICS Science,

2. ACTIVITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS A total of five BAWG meetings have been held, starting with the inaugural meeting in Cape Town in 2015, the second in Ekaterinburg in 2016, and the third one in Pune in 2017, the fourth one in Durban in 2018 and the fifth one in Rio de Janeiro in 2019. During these five years, the BAWG managed to achieve the following: • The Terms of Reference for the BAWG was adopted and it defines the mandate, scope of work and roles and responsibilities of each party; • A strategic plan was developed and adopted - it is called the 2017-2020 BRICS Astronomy Framework for Scientific Cooperation, and it defines the priority areas of cooperation and the modalities of engagement.

The priority science areas identified include but not limited to cosmology, galaxy formation and evolution, stellar and compact object astrophysics, and big data.

• A website for the BAWG has been established -

http://www.bricsastronomy.org/

3. WORKSHOPS AND OUTCOMES The proceedings of each workshop and the resolutions made by the BAWG at each meeting are all published on the website. The following meetings and workshops have been held to date: 3.1 CAPE TOWN MEETING IN 2015 The inaugural meeting of the BAWG of senior officials and experts of the governments of Brazil ,Russia, India, China and South Africa was held in Cape Town on 1012 December 2015. The BAWG took note of the

various presentations and broad discussions on policy instruments, innovation and industry developments and opportunities in the BRICS countries.

The delegates visited the astronomical sites of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT).

The SKA would become the world’s largest radio telescope when it would be fully completed and South Africa is the co-host of the SKA together with Australia. Three of the BRICS members, South Africa, China and India are members of the SKA. Main outcome of the meeting: development of the ToR for the BAWG that defines the mandate, scope of work and roles and responsibilities of each party.

SCIENCE MINISTERS OF THE BRICS COUNTRIES VISITING THE SKA TELESCOPE IN THE NORTHERN CAPE IN SOUTH AFRICA

3.2 MEETING IN RUSSIA IN 2016 The 2016 BRICS Astronomy workshop and working group (BAWG) meetings was hosted by Russia at the Ural Federal University from 5-7 September 2016. The workshop theme for the 2016 workshop was Astronomical Data and Computation. The main outcome of this meeting was the development of the 1st draft of the BRICS Astronomy strategic plan document.

Main outcome of the meeting: The development of the 1st draft of the BRICS Astronomy strategic plan document and development of the website.

BRICS DELEGATES AT THE ASTRONOMY MEETING IN EKATERINBURG IN RUSSIA IN 2016.

3.3 MEETING IN INDIA IN 2017 The meeting on Astronomy Infrastructure and Instrumentation was held at the Inter University of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Pune, India from 2123 September 2017. The workshop brought together astronomers from BRICS countries to report on the existing astronomy infrastructure and instruments with a view to further collaboration on future instrumentation as well as present and future mega projects. In addition, discussions on furthering human resource development in astronomy through involvement of universities was held.

Main outcome of the meeting: The strategic plan was finalised and adopted.

DELEGATES AT THE BRICS ASTRONOMY MEETING IN PUNE IN INDIA, 2017

3.4 MEETING IN DURBAN IN 2018 Senior officials and representatives of the BAWG from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, held a meeting in Durban, South Africa, on 31October 2018, to deliberate on strategic and operational matters. :The BAWG took note of June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 43

the various presentations made and broad discussions held on the theme “Ideas for strengthening BRICS astronomy into the future” during the BRICS Astronomy Workshop that took place on 29-30 October 2018, and that this was followed by a site visit to the astronomy facilities of the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Main outcome of the meeting: A task team was set up during the Workshop with experts from each BRICS country. The task team was mandated to cluster the different project proposals and then work towards a single joint flagship project for the consortium.

SECRETARIAT SUPPORT TEAM IN SOUTH AFRICA DURING THE 2018 BRICS ASTRONOMY MEETING IN DURBAN

3.5 MEETING IN RIO DE JANEIRO IN 2019 The BAWG from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, as well as astronomers from these countries attended the 2-day workshop on Multimessenger and Multiwavelength Astronomy, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 02 October 2019.

Main outcome of this meeting: It was agreed that the BAWG will work on one joint flagship project that is known as the BRICS INTELLIGENT TELESCOPE AND DATA NETWORK. The project is led

by Dr David Buckley from South Africa as the main principal investigator and he will be working with a team of principal investigators from each of the BRICS countries. A fully costed and detailed project proposal is 44 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022

being developed and will be submitted by end of May 2020 to the overall BRICS STI so that they can assist with the funding.

4. SUMMARY OF ASTRONOMY PROJECTS FUNDED UNDER THE BRICS STI CALLS The following three projects have been funded BRICS astronomy have been funded from the South Africa side: 4.1 ACCRETION PROCESSES ONTO COMPACT ASTROPHYSICAL OBJECTS DURING THEIR MOST LUMINOUS EPISODES OF X-RAY AND GAMMA-RAY EMISSION This project is led by David Buckley from the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) and it involves detailed studies of the accretion processes onto compact astrophysical objects during their most luminous episodes of X-ray and gammaray emission. The goal of this research is to identify the nature and fundamental physical parameters both of the compact objects and the accretion flows in their vicinity, and to compare results with theoretical models.

Under the framework of this project, we plan to investigate transient phenomena in several classes of objects: X-ray pulsars, X-ray and dwarf Novae, systems with tidal disruption of one of the components, cosmic gamma-ray bursts on the prompt emission and afterglow stages; the latter is thought to be due to the accretion of part of the material ejected during the event onto the compact object and unusual supernovae (e.g. fast or superluminous).

To complete our project goals, observations over a wide wavelength range are used – from X-ray and gamma-

rays, registered by space observatories, to the optical and infrared band (which will be obtained with the help the Russian and Indian groundbased telescopes as well as by the South African Astronomical Observatory telescopes) and down to the radio-band (MeerKAT array).

This project is the natural continuation of research performed by Russian, RSA and Indian scientists since 2009 (there are more than a dozen joint publications), including a joint Russia- RSA project which was supported by the RFBR and NSF. It is expected that at least a dozen publications will result from research performed during this project.

ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE The widened scope of the research now also includes the study of unusual supernovae associated with the latetime evolution of Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs). Included in this is the study of the host galaxies, sometimes challenging due to the relative faintness of the objects.

SALT will prove to be well suited in such studies.

One team meeting with the Indian group (S. Pandey, ARIES) was conducted from 10-12 November 2019 in Nanithal. Plans were made for observations of galaxy hosts and for utilizing the 3.5-m DOT, which will be available soon for routine observations.

With the successful launch of the Spectrum-RöntgenGamma (Spektr-RG) mission in July 2019, planning for following up of X-ray and gamma-ray transients has begun with Russian collaborators (A.Lutovinov, A. Pozanenko, IKI). This will

involve sources discovered by the ART-XC hard Xray telescope.

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS One major achievement for the reporting period is the acceptance of a paper in Astrophysical Journal: “SN 2010kd: Photometric and Spectroscopic Analysis of a Slow-Decaying Superluminous Supernova”.

This paper was led by a graduate student (A. Kumar) from the Indian group (headed by Prof S. Pandey, ARIES). The paper presents data and analysis of SN 2010kd, a low-redshift, H-deficient superluminous supernova (SLSN), based on ultraviolet/optical photometry and optical spectroscopy. This result represents the future possibilities for co-ordinated studies (e.g. amongst BRICS members) of energetic events themselves (like GRBs, SLSN), but also post-outburst studies of the galaxies which are host to these.

We were successful in obtaining observing time in open calls for both SALT and SAAO time.

In the case of the former, we have had a nominal allocation of 30,000s per semester, for 4 semesters, running from 1 May 2018 to 30 April 2020. In addition, we had an allocation of observing time on the SAAO 1.9-m (2 weeks) and 1.0-m (3weeks) telescopes in the third trimester of 2018 (Sep-Dec), during which 3 of our Russian collaborators visited to conduct the observations. The new Indian 3.5-m telescope, DOT, is now available for supporting observations following its commissioning.

FUTURE PLANS A collaboration meeting of some of the Russian & Indian participants was planned for 6-8 April at SAAO, immediately following the 9th Fermi Symposium that was to have been held the previous week in Johannesburg, which some of the team were planning to attend. Due to the global COVID-19 crisis, these plans have had to be abandoned for now. We are now planning for significant participation of team members in the forthcoming Magnetism & Accretion conference (http://ma2020. saao.ac.za/), currently scheduled for November 2020 in Cape Town (with a fall-back option for Jan 2021, should circumstances with COVID-19 dictate).

4.2 PRECISION RADIO IMAGING IN THE SKA ERA (PRISE): PUSHING THE ALGORITHMIC ENVELOPE WITH MEERKAT AND UGMRT TELESCOPES Led by Prof Oleg Smirnov from Rhodes University, the project aims to considerably increase the scientific yield of the MeerKAT and uGMRT radio telescopes, and to pave the way to the future Square Kilometre Array (SKA), by implementing the most advanced of the novel calibration and imaging techniques that have emerged in recent years. In particular, the project aims to (a) incorporate baselinedependent averaging into a full self-calibration and imaging cycle, (b) incorporate the latest compressive sensing and Bayesian imaging techniques into MeerKAT and uGMRT pipelines, (c) incorporate directiondependent calibration techniques for e.g. ionospheric and primary beam

modelling into existing software, and (d) provide HPC implementations of these algorithms that will be available to the scientific community.

4.3 SUPERCONDUCTING TERAHERTZ RECEIVERS FOR SPACE AND GROUND-BASED ASTRONOMY This project is led by Prof Coenradie Fourie from Stellenbosch and it is a recently funded project.

5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS • A networked community of astronomers and relevant government officials in the relevant science ministries has been developed and is working reasonably well together.

• The BAWG has therefore laid a good foundation in the past five years and the challenge is now to take the cooperation to the next dimension of working together on a real project.

• Continuation of the BAWG with no funding injection

by BRICS governments will start to demoralise the astronomy communities in the BRICS countries after all these years and BAWG will start to lose credibility and possibly leading to decreased participation in these meetings.

• Astronomy was funded through the BRICS STI Call for Proposals but these projects are too small to make a real impact in BRICS astronomy as a whole.

• It is therefore strongly recommended that funding opportunities beyond the BRICS STI call for proposals be made available as soon as possible.

June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 45

A Story Of Science

LEADING FROM THE FRONT

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BRICS Astronomy Magazine sat down with Scientist and Research Astronomer, David Buckley (SAAO, South Africa), who shared his story and thoughts on the Astronomy sector in SA and BRICS Countries.

Can you give us a brief background of your work in the Astronomy sector?

I am from New Zealand originally and I studied towards my doctorate in astronomy at the Australian National University and following that I took up a post-doctoral fellowship position at the University of Cape Town. I arrived at the end of 1988 then in June 1991 I took a job at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) as a research astronomer, with some instrumentation responsibility.

I am a scientist and I have developed experience over the years in astronomical telescopes and instruments, in short straddling the science engineering divide. That led to me joining the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) project when it was first mooted in 1996. In 1999 I took on a formal role as the SALT project scientist as a member of the project team that built that telescope.

That was about a six-year long activity to design and construct SALT, which still is the largest optical telescope in the Southern Hemisphere.

It was funded by an international consortium,

the SALT Foundation, with partners from 11 countries, including South Africa.

South Africa contributed about 35% of the total budget to build it but most of the actual construction work was carried out in South Africa. So it was a case where there was also a nice spin-off benefit to South Africa in that money was brought into the country from our partners to help us build the telescope. Of course apart from building a telescope for science work it also had a lot of other tangible benefits for example getting engineers involved in forefront technology in the area of optical astronomy, also supporting young researchers and engineers in the Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) area. There was always a strong component of the project that we call a spin-off benefit to a wider society.

I was the project scientist until completion of the telescope and up until it became operational, which was at the end of 2005.

During that year my role transitioned to astronomy operations manager where I was in charge of the scientific operation of the telescope which involved managing a staff of about half a

dozen astronomers, several operators and some software developers. I continued in that role until 2015 and also in the middle of that period, in 2010, I was appointed as the SALT science director which was an appointment by the international board that governed SALT. SAAO had the contract to run the telescope on behalf of the SALT Foundation. For this period I was pretty much focused on managing the night time science operations and user support provided by the SALT Astronomy Operations group.

Thereafter, my role became a more high level advocate for the telescope, when I was appointed as SALT Global Ambassador, to promote the telescope globally and also potentially to find new partners who wanted access to SALT. In 2020, I was approached to help with the re-launched African Astronomical Society (AfAS), particularly the science direction of the society. So since early 2020, I’ve been the chair of the science committee within AfAS which has expanded my involvement in the astronomy activities on the African continent.

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In 2015 I also got involved in BRICS, when South Africa became the country that led the astronomy development within BRICS and the secretariat for the astronomy working group was established in South Africa within the Department of Science and Technology (now Department of Science and Innovation. From 2015, and every year since then, I’ve been involved in the astronomy working group meetings to develop policy and programs, in particular, develop the BRICS Astronomy flagship program that was launched last year.

That involves all five BRICS countries, with currently 120 astronomers involved so far.

In terms of the program, it’s at various stages of development within each country, with initial activities beginning in South Africa following initial seed funding for the program from the Department of Science and Innovation.

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This has allowed for the recruitment of three people within South Africa to assist in the program’s development, namely a project coordinator, software developer and data scientist.

These people are embedded at the SAAO andthe University of the Western Cape (UWC) —the two institutions where the South African principal investigators are based.

BRICS Astronomy and AfAS have begun working together because of the similar synergies that exist with the two different groups, namely the fact that we are trying to establish collaboration through our different countries both within Africa and BRICS, but also identifying how we might foster human capacity development, education initiatives and enable wider societal benefits. Also how we might link to some relevant existing or future international projects.

in Morocco, and Algeria but that’s pretty much it for most of Africa, notwithstanding the recent establishment of the Entoto Observatory within Ethiopia, and an older European telescope relocated in Burkina Faso. I think it’s fair to say that much of Africa is not yet as well advanced or developed in terms of astronomical research capacity or even astronomical education in many cases.

There are certainly positive things that have happened.

For example, some students who have trained in South Africa and attained their PhD degrees have now gone back to their own countries and started astronomy departments within their universities so there is now a growing community of astronomers but it’s still small number statistics and there is a big challenge ahead for AfAS to really assist in the development of astronomy on the continent.

How do you see the balance between the two organisations the AfAS and BRICS Astronomy?

What gave you the interest to go into Astronomy because it’s not a traditional area of study?

There are well established astronomy groups in certain countries but traditionally the strengths in terms of astronomical research have been pretty well focused in South Africa and countries in North Africa. The South African Astronomical Observatory and South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) provides the major astronomy facility access in South Africa.

In North Africa, there has been a long established observatory in Egypt and also

My interest in astronomy came from a general interest in science as a child, but one particular event that stands out was when I was seven years old. My father bought me a small telescope and that, coupled with one or two astronomy books that I had at that time really got my interest.

Subsequently, during my school years, I just developed a love of science and by the time I had finished school I didn’t really know that you could even get a job as an astronomer.

New Zealand is a very small place and has a very small number of astronomers.

So when I started as an undergraduate at the University of Canterbury in my home town, Christchurch, I originally planned to study chemistry. Well I started studying chemistry, but I also studied physics and it also happened that they had introduced a first year astronomy course. All of those subjects require mathematics,so I was also doing applied mathematics and in the end I did a double major, in physics and applied mathematics. . As I was coming to the end of my bachelor’s degree they introduced a Masters degree in astronomy. So I went on and did that, and following that I realised I really wanted to be an astronomer, so I applied for a scholarship in Australia at the Australian National University (ANU), in Canberra. I got accepted and completed my PhD before moving to South Africa in 1988.

What are some of the benefits that people take for granted and don’t understand but have their origins from the astronomy sector?

While astronomy research can be considered as “Blue Sky” or “curiosity driven pursuit”, it does have technological spin-offs.

For example Wi-Fi. So everything that we have now in terms of Wi-Fi is a spinoff from that inventionby an Australian radio astronomer.

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The World Wide Web was invented by a physicist at CERN. These are things which scientists don’t necessarily do because they want to see a society benefit necessarily, but it is a consequence of the fact that you can never predict the future benefits of something, particularly new technologies.

There are many technologies that have been leveraged by scientists who have been pushing new innovative instrumentation in astronomy.

One of them is detection of light, having efficient detectors that can count photons (i.e. detect light) from a source in the cosmos and one of the drivers for the development of siliconbased CCD detectors has been astronomy. Not only just the hardware, but also some of the software aspects of looking for faint sources in a confusing background of images. An excellent example of spin-off benefits of astronomy was the connection between astronomers at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, and people studying breast cancer at John Hopkins University where they developed computer programs to look at mammograms to identify early cancer cells using very similar algorithms and very similar computer programs that have been developed across the road at the Space Telescope Institute to look at the very faint objects with the Hubble Space Telescope.

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How do you foresee the BRICS flagship program being funded in the near future?

To give you the optimistic viewpoint (and I suppose I’m more of an optimist than pessimist), the fact that South Africa has already put in a significant amount of funding for the next four years for the BRICS flagship program, in my opinion is very positive. We are in the process of bringing in at least three people who will be involved in driving our project forward. I’m very optimistic since in South Africa we already have a parallel project happening on linking our existing telescopes into an intelligent observatory, so that’s going ahead anyway.

Regarding the other BRICS countries, the people involved in the BRICS Intelligent Telescope and Data Network proposal, are basically covering all basic facilities in those countries. They are all definitely supportive of this program, however, what is uncertain is the time-scale for them to leverage new funding from their own science ministries and funding bodies within those countries. Some of them would seem to be closer to doing that than others so I think it will be something that will evolve over the next year or two.

There’s been good support at what I would call the grass roots level with scientists, the people who want to do this.

This culminated in the meeting in 2019 in Rio where various programs had been put forward for flagships and the final decision was made

to adopt the single flagship project. So from that point of view we have this large body of people in all countries involved who are definitely behind this and are talking to their science ministries to say this is the project that needs to be developed and supported financially.

It was very positive in 2020 when they basically ratified this to be the project to be supported. The bottom line is there is no single source of funding; there is not any money that’s going to come from, for example, the BRICS Bank. Therefore the support of the program will have to come from the individual countries and most likely through the normal grant processes.

I still have a worry that the program will be appropriately funded at a level expected for a “Flagship”, which may be challenging in the current economic environment. We developed this program with a budget of about 30 million Euros over a nine-year period and that’s basically what we aspire to raise going forward. It may sound a lot, but for five countries the annual commitment is, I believe, quite reasonable. The major cost is for the support of graduate students and early career astronomers within BRICS, something which would greatly enhance the human capacity development agenda for all BRICS countries—something strongly supported by the respective governments. So I’m quietly confident that we will succeed in the long run.

SAVE

THE DATE

June 2022 • bricsastronomy.org • BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE 51

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52 BRICS ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE • bricsastronomy.org • June 2022