A group of young and old students from the Faculty of Sciences at Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM) recently launched the Mozambican Astronomy Association (AMAS) at the institution’s main campus.
One of the aims of this new organisation is to ensure that the country is on the map of astronomy activities carried out at global level, including participating in and hosting international events
According to the association’s vice-president, Victória Samboco, quoted by the Kabum Digital website, the idea is to stimulate the production of research in the area of astronomy, a scientific field that is still new in the country and whose dissemination with a view to its growth must be promoted.
“I believe that most people are unaware of its existence and how they can go about training in this area,” he said.
Yara Simango, president of AMAS, pointed out that one of the points that motivated the creation of the initiative was the opportunity that some young people had to see what has been done outside the country in this area and try to implement it locally.
The president also pointed out that several young Mozambicans who are studying abroad have been producing scientific articles that will be published in specialised journals, with the signatures of foreign higher education institutions, which is why AMAS intends to bring them together, so that they can produce research on national soil and thus confer international prestige on national institutions.
“These are Mozambican brains working for institutions that are not from our country,” she emphasised, quoted by the Eduardo Mondlane University website.
The creation of the Association is also related to the fact that the organisers believe that astronomy has made significant strides on the African continent, which shows the need to establish solid foundations so that this area of knowledge can develop in Mozambique.
The launch of the initiative was also attended by Melvin Hoare, a renowned British scientist and manager of the “Development in Africa with Radio Astronomy (DARA)” project.
Before the official launch, AMAS held its first event in January, with more than 50 participants and sections on the observation of lunar craters, talks on constellations and natural and artificial satellites.
