In September, the installation of mirrors on three large telescopes (Large-Sized Telescope – LST) was completed on the Canary Island of La Palma. These telescopes will become part of the future Cherenkov Telescope Array observatory.
Two Cherenkov telescopes help us understand extreme cosmic phenomena through very high-energy gamma rays; they are currently the most sensitive devices of their kind in the world. The prototypes, which were developed by an international team involving Czech scientists, are now in Ondřejov. This is an exceptional opportunity for Czech astrophysicists, as the telescopes may be moved abroad in the future.
It is not a common thing that a new telescope for detecting cosmic rays is introduced to the world. The feat of our colleagues from the Joint Laboratory of Optics in Olomouc can thus be seen as unique.
On Wednesday, February 23, the Cherenkov telescope SST-1M recorded its first events initiated by high-energy particles (of hadronic origin or originating from gamma-rays). Two telescopes are gradually being built at the Ondřejov Observatory since 2021. Among the key institutions involved in those activities are Université de Genève, Instytut Fizyki Jądrowej PAN, Krakow and the Czech Academy of Sciences.
