Step back in time and gaze at the stars at the modern National Observatory above Doi Intanon.

Also includes a 1 meter diameter telescope and several smaller telescopes. There will be an officer waiting to roll the camera. Find the stars to admire.

Ready to go with the older people at the observatory who will point out and tell us what stars are above us now. Starlight flashed in the darkness. We also looked through the camera and sawJupiter Saturn The Pleiades star cluster, the Orion Nebula, the star Betelgeuse, and the star Sirius, are very wonderful.

The zodiac signs that we consider very beautiful and full of aura are: The Crab Nebula It is one of the oldest known nebulae. Because it is so bright and beautiful. It is located in the constellation Taurus, 6,300 light-years from Earth, and this brightness results from the death of a star. Causing a huge explosion called a “supernova.”

There is also an opening.Telescope control room“Let us also learn about the work of astronomers.

Oh! This room is lined with computer screens. Each screen is filled with up-to-date information about the world of astronomy. He also monitors and controls the operation of the 2.4-meter telescope at this observatory. And telescopes outside too

This is in order to be able to continuously and clearly observe celestial bodies such as galaxies, the Milky Way, or other astronomical phenomena. In different countries in the northern and southern hemispheres which have a higher latitude than Thailand's location

Including tracking celestial objects all day long For example, during the day we can't look at the stars, so we have to use an observatory somewhere else, like in the US or China, where it's already dark, etc.

“Thanakrit Santikunaporn“The head of the Academic Services and Astronomical Communications Department told us how this control room works. In simple language this is what makes people who are not in the astronomy field feel like I want to be an astronomer.

He said there were a lot of screens he saw. The cockpit displays different information, for example, some displays contain multiple images of the sky in real time. That and turns around to find out and search for humidity, temperature and air pressureAstronomy

Inside this control room will be an automated system. Working Automatically This is the information that operators here must monitor at all times. It is an application in which we will write all the camera control systems. Researchers come to use it and don't have to get up at night to control the camera.

Just enter information about what you want to study. On which wave channel? What equipment do you want to take pictures or collect data with? But the key is in the system the camera will collect data for you. Researchers have downloaded it and then you can use it to conduct research.

At the same time, our camera is also equipped with spectrometer study equipment. Which will be able to see up to 600,000 shadows and also allows us to observe many astronomical phenomena. For use in research

Research that is of great interest to astronomers. It will be about exoplanets.Solar System We want to know if there really is life outside Earth. Our world is just one planet. Or is there life in this place?

So he studied whether any of the planets in this solar system, such as Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, had life. In addition to the planets in the solar system, he also went to look for another star, which should be there. planetSpin around

Using the method of shining a box on the stars. Then measure the photoperiod. Normally, a star should have constant light. But suddenly if the light goes down we will be able to guess that there must be something blocking the light. If we continue studying, we will see that it will fall.

We can study the exposure value. You will also know that the planets are protected. How much time does each orbit take or how much light is lost? If it disappears a lot, this means that the planet will be large.

By finding the period we will know that the period of the fast rotating orbit will be close.sphere Just as Mercury orbits for a few days, and Venus orbits for a few hundred days, our universe has 365 days, the closer it is to its parent star. It will have a faster orbital period and depth, so if light suddenly appears and then disappears,

This indicates that the planet has no atmosphere. But if the light gradually decreases and gradually rises, this means that during the planet’s orbit passing in front of the stars we will see the light passing through the atmosphere. We will know whether the planet has an atmosphere or not, and we will also be able to find it.

So far, we have discovered more than 4,000 exoplanets, and NARIT researchers have discovered about 12 of them using our own and foreign telescopes.

Or to find out whether the planet has life or not. It will look at the distance from the planet to its host star. If the planet is far from its host star at the correct distance, it is as if the Earth is far from the sun. It turned out to be a habitable or livable area. Or if it is far enough away that water can exist in solid, liquid and gaseous states, then there must be life.

Currently, we have not encountered any extraterrestrial life. But if you ask 100 astronomers, 100 of them will answer that extraterrestrial life probably exists. But we still haven't found it.

As for the topic of the UFO, which is abbreviated as “unidentified flying object,” in astronomy it refers to any object in the sky. We cannot determine what it is. We will call it a UFO first, but later if we can determine what this thing is, it will not be a UFO anymore.

Astronomy is a dynamic story. Stargazing, which always invites exploration, is not just an astrotourism experience. But it will also be an inspiration to many others. Who dreams of becoming an astronomer in the future as well

CR: Nareit photo

Page 17, Thansitakij Newspaper, Year 43, Issue 3961, Date 28 – 31 January 2024