The Entoto Observatory Space Science Research Center (EORC) is an

astronomical observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Th ...

station located in

Mount Entoto Mount Entoto () is the highest peak on the Entoto Mountains, which overlooks the city of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. It reaches 3,200 meters above sea level. Overview It is a historical place where Emperor Menelik II resided and built ...

, close to

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

. The centre was initiated during the establishment of the Ethiopian Space Science Society (ESSS) and officially began operations in 2012. The Board of Directors appointed Dr. Solomon Belay Tessema as the first Scientific Director in May 2012. The Ethiopian space program was born from EORC, and the strong leadership and commitment of Dr. Solomon Belay Tessema were the reasons for its creation. He has established graduate programs in four areas astronomy and astrophysics, space science, Remote sensing and Geodesy affiliated with AAU with a limited budget and resources. Dr. Solomon is the father of the space program in Ethiopia in particular East African in general. The Entoto Observatory installed twin 1m

telescopes A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption, or Reflection (physics), reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally, it was an optical instrument using len ...

in early 2014, and science operations began in early 2015. Final commissioning was completed by early 2015 after the installation of essential supplemental equipment. Currently, it is financed by a consortium of universities, ESSS, and the

Ethiopian government The government of Ethiopia () is the federal government of Ethiopia. It is structured in a framework of a federal republic, federal parliamentary system, parliamentary republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, prime minister is the hea ...

. It plans to expand the center in

Lalibela Lalibela () is a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Lasta district and North Wollo Zone, it is a tourist site for its famous rock-cut monolithic churches designed in contrast to the earlier monolithic churches in Ethiopia ...

and other towns.

History

The Entoto Observatory and Space Science Research Center (EORC) was initiated during the establishment of the Ethiopian Space Science Society (ESSS) in 2004. The first initiative was conducted by the board members of ESSS and established the Astronomy and Space Science Research center at Entoto and the Ethiopian Highlands. In 2011, the owner was asked by ESSS to develop a draft list of science initiatives to support the establishment of the center. The center was established in 2012, supported by numerous private and public universities around the world. In 2013, the two domes for the twin telescopes were completed by deserting the trees. The Entoto Observatory has twin 1m telescope installed in early 2014, and science operations began in early 2015. Final commissioning was completed by early 2015 after installment of internet connections, scientific equipment, lighting systems, and testing equipment. Currently it is financed by a consortium of universities, ESSS and the Ethiopian government.

Future benefit

The Entoto Observatory offers benefits to Ethiopian astronomers and those in the East African region. It also intended to boost research programs and a student training center. The initiative also selected a potentially ideal place such as Lalibela for a research center. Two sites have been set up with the requisite equipment (DIMMs, automatic weather stations, all sky cameras, sky brightness monitors), and infrastructure support (roads, housing) has been established.

References

{{reflist Science and technology in Ethiopia Astronomical observatories 2012 establishments in Ethiopia