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Space science programme takes off
The clear skies for which South Africa is famous go well with braaivleis
(outdoor barbecues, for the uninitiated) and outdoor sports. But when the
sun goes down, those cloudless, starlit nights are the envy of astronomers
around the world. To take advantage of this natural asset, local
universities and research institutes have clubbed together to create a new
breed of space scientist...starting with honours and masters students who
have stars in their eyes about the stars in their future.
National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme
"What's significant about this programme is the collaboration among
different institutions, which makes it internationally competitive, on par
with the United States and the United Kingdom," says University of Cape
Town's Dr Peter Dunsby.
"No single institution in South Africa can mount such a programme. What we
have is a great deal of expertise in cosmology and astrophysics but it's
scattered across the country and the only way to expose students to a wide range
of topics, theoretical and observational, is to bring people to
University of Cape Town to teach in this collaborative programme."
Academics have a reputation for faction fighting and turf wars - even when the
territory in dispute is as big as the universe. But this time, top
researchers from eight South African universities (University of Cape Town,
University of Natal Durban, University of Natal Pietermaritzburg, University
of the Free State, Potchefstroom University, University of Zululand, Rhodes
University and University of the NorthWest) have joined forces with four
research units (the South African Astronomical Observatory, the
Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory, the Hermanus Magnetic
Observatory and iThemba Lab) to create a challenging new degree that rivals
anything available overseas. Its official name is the National Astrophysics and
Space Science Programme but you could call it a university of the universe.
Astronomy in Africa
While there is a long history of astronomy in North Africa, dating back to
medieval times, there's little in equatorial Africa to excite a bright young
student. And yet Africa is in a critical position - without input from this
continent, astronomers from Australia and Chile can't track stars throughout
the night. It would be like going blind for a few hours each evening.
"I think there's a trend that students go to graduate school abroad and
statistics show that students who leave Africa tend to leave for good, the
majority of them and by retaining them here, we are at least keeping them on the
continent,' says Dunsby. "We're building research capacity."
An honours student from Uganda, and masters students from Kenya and Sudan bear
out his assertion. Once upon the time, applied mathematician Bob Osano was going
to leave his home in Nairobi in Kenya and go into academic exile in England, at
the University of Durham, in order to further his studies. Instead, he's at the
University of Cape Town, in a new astrophysics programme: "it's going to
keep people here and not just keep people here but be able to attract people,
talented people, here from other parts of the world and that's good for the
continent," says Osano. He became interested in astronomy after a NASA
(America's National Aeronautical and Space Agency) did a presentation in Kenya,
and then he found out about the South African course over the internet.
Once upon a time, a son of cotton farmers from the eastern Sudan used to
spend his nights gazing at the moon and stars. Now he's based at the
University of Natal, studying them: "we have more than twenty universities
in the Sudan but they teach physics, not astrophysics. Normally people are
going overseas for such programmes," says Siddiq Talha, who got his first
degree at the University of Khartoum. "Overseas is a very expensive course,
and sometimes they don't get a chance financially so I think for me I'm
really really lucky to start with this programme and further my studies here
in South Africa. There are a lot of astronomers from Africa and they are
spread out all over the world and they need to get in touch because they can do
a lot of things together."
Objectives
"The objectives have always been two fold," says Dr Patricia Whitelock,
acting director of the South African Astronomical Observatory in Cape
Town. "One is to staff the exciting new astronomy facilities that are
happening in Southern Africa, from the high energy sterescopic system in Namibia
through the Southern African Large Telescope to the possible square kilometre
array coming in 10 years time but the other is also to provide the kind of
skills that South African industry really needs, the hi-tech computing skills,
the familiarity with state of the art electronics and the kind of
problem-solving abilities that people need to take part in that sort of activity
and we are hoping that roughly half the people will carry on in the academic
world, in the research world and the other half will go out into industry."
Quotes from the NAASP website bear out Dr Whitelock's claim that astronomers are
in demand in a range of industries for their ability to find their way around
computer programmes and their analytical and communication skills. Students come
from across Africa, are based at varsities across the country, but come to Cape
Town for an initial intense burst of studying. With the new 11 metre wide South
African Large Telescope, or SALT, due to start operations at Sutherland in the
Karoo in two years' time, Africa will have a ringside seat for looking deep into
the universe.
"Astronomy is a female occupation," says Dr Dunsby. "It
seems to attract the fairer sex." "We have a resource that the
northern hemisphere doesn't have," says Rhodes University astrophysics
masters student Laura Richter. "We can see stars that they can't and a lot
of the galaxy which is interesting we can see and they can't. The South African
Large Telescope was specifically made to be cheap, it's a fraction of the cost
of a telescope this size in general, and it gives us a means to use that
resource," Richter says she enjoys astronomy because the mathematical
theories suddenly become useful.
Training
The space science programme wants to train as many as 100 Phd's within the
decade. That requires about 20 honours students a year, while they hope to
double the number of masters students next year from six to a dozen. The first
Phds from this particular programme may only be awarded in the year 2007 - but
astronomers are used to taking a long perspective.
"I think what's happened over the last decade is that theoretical astronomy
and cosmology have come together mainly due to the enormous developments in
fibre optic technology and computers. For the first time we can test our
theories. For example, I can give you a much better idea of the age of the
universe now, and that's very exciting," says Dr Peter Dunsby. "It is
true that astronomy is expensive and we are a developing country but I think if
you track the success of other developing countries around the world, very
fundamental research pays off, it develops basic research tools and there are
always technological spinoffs."
"Nothing is more exciting than astronomy, nothing's more exciting than
taking part in the exploration of the universe, in everything that's out
there," says Dr Patricia Whitelock of the South African Astronomical
Observatory. "Why should Africans be left out of that? Why shouldn't South
Africa take part in that voyage to the beginning of time and to the very
edges of universe? When South Africans know they can do that, and that they can
do it competitively with Americans and Europeans, they're going to want a piece
of the action."
More information:
And if you're interested in becoming a space scientist, check out http://www.star.ac.za
for more information on the national astrophysics and space science postgraduate
degree programmes.
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