2023-08-29 04:31:12
During the last weeks, the first pieces of the Chinese-Argentine radio telescope called CART began to arrive at the Astronomical Complex located in the El Leoncito National Park, province of San Juan. The equipment will serve to explore the universe jointly between both countries. The equipment is expected to start operating in mid-2024 and contribute to improving Earth observation and GPS navigation satellite technologies.
The Radio Telescope, which has a dish 40 meters in diameter and weighs more than a thousand tons, is made up of three main parts: the antenna, the receiver and the data processing system. “The antenna is in charge of collecting the signal coming from the sky. The receiver is in charge of taking the energy supplied by the antenna and conditioning it at adequate levels and frequencies for its recording. For its part, data processing is It is done using a computer system”, explains Marcelo Segura, project manager.
Specifically, CART will work in the fields of Radio Astronomy and Space Geodesy. So far, most of the radio telescopes of this type are located in the northern hemisphere. The installation of the equipment in San Juan will not only help to improve the global coverage of the network and will benefit all the countries of the world, but will also serve to study the southern hemisphere, especially Argentina.
“Radio astronomy is dedicated to the exploration of the universe by detecting electromagnetic signals at radio wavelengths. There are many celestial objects that emit these wavelengths,” says Ana María Pacheco, an astronomer at the National University of San Juan (UNSJ) and member of the CART Scientific Committee. For example, there are objects called pulsars that behave like a kind of coastal lighthouse: they shine for a few seconds, go off, and then turn on again after a while. Other interesting bodies that emit radio waves are quasars, luminous galaxies very distant from Earth.
For its part, Space Geodesy works with electromagnetic signals that allow precise positioning on the Earth’s surface. In this sense, “CART will serve as support for the technique known as GPS and will be part of the international terrestrial reference framework,” Pacheco points out.
20 years of work
The agreement between Argentina and China began to take shape in 2004 under the presidency of Néstor Kirchner. Seven years later, the first Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Conicet, the National University of San Juan and the provincial government. In 2012, the UNSJ and the National Astronomy Observatory of China agreed to the collaborative construction of the Radio Telescope.
“In 2014 I was appointed as project manager and the following year the quadripartite Framework Agreement was signed between the UNSJ, the Conicet, the government of San Juan and the China Observatory,” recalls Segura. Two years later, the Volponi Seismological Institute and the Institute of Materials and Soils (both belonging to the University) carried out soil studies and in 2017 the cornerstone of the CART was laid in El Leoncito.
At present, the base and the seismic sensors necessary for the installation of the CART have been completed. In addition, in addition to the necessary equipment, the first group of Chinese technicians has already landed in San Juan who, together with local specialists, will assemble the radio telescope.
National capital of astrotourism
Seeing the cloudy sky in San Juan is almost impossible. In fact, most days are clear and this particularity becomes a worldwide privilege for astronomical observation. For this reason, the Province has several sites dedicated to the field.
Two of them are the El Leoncito Astronomical Complex, which depends on the Conicet, and the Carlos U. Cesco High Station (CASLEO), which depends on the UNSJ. The latter is characterized by the darkness of its night sky: more than 250 cloudless nights per year with almost no wind. In addition, it has a special atmosphere since it is free of contamination and a low content of water vapor.
Also, in the city of San Juan is the Félix Aguilar Observatory and the Reinaldo Carestia Astronomical Museum. In this way, thousands of tourists are captivated by the skies of a special province.
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