Ashley Nyamandi’s upcoming poster presentation on the progress of astronomy and space science in Zambia at the 32nd International Astronomical Union General Assembly 2024
Ashley Nyamandi is a passionate astrophysics student, currently pursuing a master’s degree at The Copperbelt University in Zambia. With a strong foundation in Applied Physics from the National University of Science and Technology (Zimbabwe), Ashley has taken significant strides in astronomy, driven by his interest in the applications of machine learning to solve astrophysics problems.
Ashley completed his Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Applied Physics in 2022. In recognition of his potential and dedication, he was awarded the prestigious Pan African Planetary and Science Network (PAPSSN) scholarship in 2023. This scholarship has enabled him to further his studies in Astrophysics. Outside of his academic pursuits, Ashley enjoys playing chess and spending time with friends, embodying a well-rounded and balanced approach to life.
Ashley will shed light on the remarkable progress Zambia has made in his upcoming poster presentation during the “Poster Session Division C-3: Education, Outreach and Heritage” on the 12th of August in developing astronomy and strengthening academic programs at higher learning institutions. His poster will focus on key developments and forecast the country’s future in astronomy and space science.
Ashley’s presentation will not only celebrate the achievements but also provide an outlook on the future of astronomy in Zambia. Ashley aims to contribute to the global scientific community and inspire future generations of astronomers.
Abstract:
Zambia has made remarkable progress in the area development of astronomy, human capital development and strengthening of academic and learning programmes at institutions of higher learning. Several activities have been implemented in this process. In this talk, we highlight key developments that have taken place and forecast the future of astronomy and space science in the country. We touch on new learning programmes that have been developed, the training activities including but not limited to Development in Africa with Radio Astronomy (DARA), starlight in the university lab (ASTROLAB), Network for Astronomy School Education (NASE) and several other astronomy workshops done over the years. The country has been doing several outreach programmes to inform the public about astronomy’s importance and the benefits of hosting an observatory of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project at Kasempa, now called the Kasempa Radio Astronomy Observatory (KASERAO).
