The employees of the Faculty of Geology commenced work associated with the construction of next generation ground-based very high-energy gamma-ray observatory – the Cherenkov Telescope Array.
The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern asked researchers from the Faculty of Geology to assess geological and geotechnical conditions for the telescopes to be built in Paranal in Chile.
The observatory is located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile on Cerro Paranal at over 2600 m altitude. It is one of three observatories operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). Cherenkov Telescope Array is designed to be the largest and most sensitive observatory which will have unprecedented accuracy in its detection of high-energy gamma rays. More than 1350 researchers and engineers from 32 countries are participating in various activities from construction to scientific development of the facility.
In 2015, astronomers from the University of Warsaw were engaged in choosing the place for the construction of telescopes. Prof. Tomasz Bulik from the Astronomical Observatory of the UW was the leader of international research team. Researchers have chosen two locations – Paranal and La Palma.