Speaker
Description
The department of physics at the University of Zululand, one of the rural based higher institutions in Vulindlela, KZN, South Africa is embarking on a new journey to introduce astronomy and astrophysics both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The university started the idea of having astronomy research in the department of physics after it was involved in the Astrolab training organized by DST and OAD. Astrolab is one of the pioneering projects that uses the Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO) networked and remotely controlled robotic telescopes to train learners who don’t have access to telescopes. The department’s involvement in such projects enhanced the desire to include astronomy and astrophysics as one of the research areas and not only train previously disadvantaged students across South Africa but also use the telescope to conduct public outreach programs. To achieve this, the university in collaboration with DST is working on building an optical astronomical observatory at KwanTozwa mountain, East of Eshowe, which will host a 40-inch optical robotic telescope. In this talk, I will present the progresses made and experience gained and the way forward as well as collaborations with colleagues across Africa.
| Stream | Education Development and Outreach |
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