UEFs have a state-of-the-art telescope for sky imaging and various scientific purposes

The Antares Astronomical Observatory (OAA), through the Feira de Santana State University (Uefs), has acquired a revolutionary telescope capable of ensuring diffraction-limited images with large-format CCD cameras (the sensor responsible for recording the “visible” image) in a perfectly flat field of view.

To start the operation of equipment and projects in the field of astronomy, a meeting is held with university professors in Bahia at the observatory from Thursday (2) to Friday (3).

Until then, the Antares Observatory was used for scientific publishing purposes. “We are now entering this stage of scientific equipment and we are holding this workshop specifically to present to the community the scientific projects that we will be working on with this telescope. Being a telescope for scientific purposes, our interest is to turn it towards imaging the sky,” astrophysicist Accorda told Cedad.

In this sense, researchers will be able, for example, to observe stellar variability, measure distances between star clusters, and observe exoplanets (planets outside the solar system) that pass in front of stars.

“So, these will be the contributions that this telescope will make to us from a scientific point of view,” he declared.

Professor Accorda told Cidade that the investment to bring in the complete structure of this telescope was about one and a half million. “Since we started, the investments in equipment, for this telescope, have been about one and a half million Qatari riyals to bring in the entire structure, the dome, the detectors, the CDK20 telescope, and its assembly, and it all came from that arrangement,” he said.

The idea is that other universities could use the telescope, in order to unite the Northeast’s astronomy group.

We want this telescope to be part of a group of universities that will use this telescope for scientific purposes. We have professors from the Federal University of Bahia, we have professors from Santa Cruz State University, the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, and the University of Reconcavo da Bahia. So, the idea is to unite the Northeast Astronomy Group.”