Retrieved from Allafrica News
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200206120456.html

Business Day (Johannesburg)
By Tamar Kahn
June 12, 2002 
Posted to the web June 12, 2002 

SA has strengthened its presence in international space affairs by joining a Russianled project to build a $200m space telescope.

The World Space Observatory will consist of a 1,7m diameter mirror and equipment for measuring the ultraviolet part of the spectrum placed on board a spacecraft orbiting the earth.

"It will be used to study phenomena in the universe that cannot be studied from the ground due to the effects of earth's atmosphere," says Peter Martinz, an astronomer at the SA Astronomical Observatory.

The observatory will thus complement SA's ground-based telescope initiatives, such as the high energy stereoscopic system currently under construction in Namibia, and the Southern African Large Telescope being built in Sutherland in Northern Cape.

Martinez said a national working group was being established, which would consider what role SA should play in developing the World Space Observatory. At the simplest level, this would involve SA establishing a regional operations centre, which would offer ground support from a local tracking station.

There was also scope, he said, for SA to contribute components to the spacecraft. It was unlikely the telescope would be launched before 2010.

The observatory has been developed by an international consortium of countries, which includes Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Russia and Britain.

The work in each country is organised by a national World Space Observatory working group, co-ordinated by a central committee.