For 24 years, the second of the ongoing TUBITAK Sky Observation Events for 2022 started in Van. Sky enthusiasts have the opportunity to observe on the shore of Lake Van for the first time.
The Sky Observation Event, which started at the Nursery Park by Lake Van in Van's Edremit district, is organized by the Ministries of Industry and Technology, Youth and Sports, Culture and Tourism under the coordination of TÜBİTAK with the contributions of Van Governorship, Van Metropolitan Municipality, Eastern Anatolia Development Agency, Van Yüzüncü Yıl University and Turkey Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA).
Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank and TÜBİTAK President Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal officially opened the event.
In his speech at the Van Sky Observation Event Opening Ceremony held at the Nursery Park, Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank reminded that they decided to spread the observation events organized in Antalya for years to different cities in Anatolia.
Emphasizing that they appeal to all sky enthusiasts from 7 to 77 at the events, Minister Varank said: "Our biggest goal is to stimulate the curiosity of science, technology, space and astronomy in our children. We believe that our children who have this experience here today, looking at the stars, the moon and the planets, will become the most important scientists of tomorrow." Pointing out that people from Van also showed great interest in the event, Varank said that thousands of guests are now hosted in the events, where 300-400 participants took part in previous years, and that approximately 2 thousand people from 73 provinces applied to participate. Varank emphasized that exploring the sky by staying in tents is a special experience and gave information about the event.
"We accelerated space studies"
Stating that there has never been a period when the private sector has been so interested in participating in space activities, Varank said that when we look at the countries that stand out in the space race, we see that they are also economically strong countries in the world. Pointing out that space studies are the driving force of R&D, scientific knowledge, innovation and technology, Varank said: "In this direction, we have accelerated space studies under the leadership of our President. We established the Turkish Space Agency to ensure coordination in the field of space, where we have made significant gains, especially through TÜBİTAK UZAY. We accelerated our work by announcing the National Space Program and our goals. We will launch our first domestic and national observation satellite İMECE into orbit in January. We have successfully completed the tests of the hybrid technology rocket system that we plan to use in the unmanned spacecraft we will send to the Moon."
Noting that another goal of the National Space Program is to make Turkey one of the countries competent in astronomical observations and ground tracking of space objects, Varank shared the following information: "When I said, 'We are building the Eastern Anatolia Observatory on Karakaya Hills in Erzurum at an altitude of 3,170 meters; we are building the largest telescope to be installed on the European continent in Erzurum,' they made fun of me. Everyone suddenly became experts. No sir, Erzurum is snowy and observations cannot be made there. When it suits them, they brag about how beautiful the Hubble Space Telescope is, but when we do something, they immediately try to put a handle on it. With our own telescope, we will be able to take images at a much higher resolution than the Hubble Space Telescope. When the Eastern Anatolia Observatory is completed, Erzurum will be one of the most important observation centers in the world with its location and optical properties. We will hold our next observation event around the Eastern Anatolia Observatory on July 22-24."
Varank stated that they started the official process for the "Turkish Space Traveler and Science Mission Project", which constitutes an important stage of the National Space Program, and continued as follows: "We will send a Turkish citizen to the international space station for 10 days in 2023 to carry out scientific activities. We had announced our Science Mission call for our scientists and researchers. Our space traveler will carry out the tests and experiments of the research projects to be selected within the scope of the call on the International Space Station. I invite our researchers and scientists from Van and all over Turkey to apply for this call."
Referring to the importance of raising human resources in the field of space, Varank talked about the work carried out in this context, such as Deneyap Technology Workshops and TEKNOFEST. Varank invited young people to participate in TEKNOFEST, which will be held in Samsun this year. Reminding that the sky observation event will last for two more days, Varank called on Van residents and citizens in neighboring cities to participate in the events.
"We have a new excitement starting today"
TÜBİTAK President Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal, who made another opening speech at the event, recalled the Zerzevan Sky Observation event held in Diyarbakır on June 9-12 and said, "We have a new excitement starting today. It is a beautiful union that will continue for 3 days until noon on Tuesday. We will have 3 days where our young people and those who feel young can find answers to whatever they have in mind in the field of astronomy, astronomy and space. We will spend our days by observing at night and with trainings and workshops during the day."
Touching on the history of the observation events, Mandal said, "The process started in 1998 and continued centered in Antalya until 2021. In 2019, since our Minister of Industry and Technology stated that the spread of these events to a much wider audience is valuable for our country and our future, the number of people participating in our event, which went a little quieter, increased from 300s to thousands in 2019. In 2020, we took a one-year break due to the pandemic. In 2021, we held our observation event outside Antalya for the first time, we were in Diyarbakır Zerzevan."
Noting that they were in Zerzevan for the second time on June 9-12 this year, Mandal said, "This time we were more experienced, we carried out our event there." Stating that this was the first time an observation event was held in Van, Mandal said, "We are here for an exciting 3 days for us. Afterwards, we will be in Erzurum for the first time on July 22-24. Eastern Anatolia Observatory has the largest telescope in Turkey. Afterwards, we will be in Antalya Saklıkent, where TÜBİTAK's Observatory is located, on August 18-22."
Prof. Dr. Mandal said, "What we want to do here is this: On the one hand, to raise awareness, and on the other hand, when we look at our history, many scientists came out of this geography, but there has been a gap in the field of space science and astronomy. Now we are working at full speed to close that gap.
With the guidance, instructions and recommendations of our President and Minister, and most importantly with your participation... We have experienced this to the fullest, we saw that difference when we went to Zerzevan for the first time last year. I think we will see it in a much different way in Van."
"TÜBİTAK will continue its work with the excitement and responsibility we receive from you"
Mandal also touched upon TÜBİTAK's work in the field of space, saying, "When we look to the future, especially the year 2023 is very precious for us. It is the 100th anniversary of the founding of our Republic. But our 100th year has another meaning. It will be one of the most important years for Turkey's National Space Program. Two satellites coordinated by TÜBİTAK, İMECE, our observation satellite, and 6A, our communication satellite, will be launched in 2023. It is with great pleasure that I would like to say that these two satellites have reached this stage from design to development with Turkey's engineers and TÜBİTAK's researchers. This is a great enthusiasm. I am one of the top 10 countries in the world in the field of space, and we will experience this more enthusiastically in 2023. In 2023, Turkey's first space traveler, walking under the coordination of our Ministry of Industry and Technology, in which our institution is also involved, will move to the International Space Station and conduct experimental research there. This is also very valuable for us. TÜBİTAK will continue its work in this context with the excitement and responsibility we receive from you."
Mandal also gave information about the activities that will take place in Van: "During the event here, we will have an observation festival at night and presentations during the day. In the workshops, our children will not only observe the technologies of the future from a distance, but they will also experience "I can do it too" in a strong way and touch technology."
Underlining that TÜBİTAK has been preparing for this event for months with a large team, Mandal said: "Here, 60 astronomers with 30 telescopes will experience this excitement with you. I would like to thank them from the bottom of my heart. I would especially like to thank you, our valuable participants, for coming from different cities of our country and being here to experience this excitement together, and I wish you all good observations."
During the ceremony, the video of the observation event in Diyarbakır and the video of Kadriye Diken's interview about her interest in space were also shown.
Following the opening ceremony, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Selçuk Topal, moderated by Pelin Çift, talked about the curiosity for space throughout history in a conversation titled "Space from the Past to the Future". Minister Varank also attended the talk.
TUG astronomers in the field
In the program attended by Van Governor Ozan Balcı, professional and amateur astronomers examine the sky and have the opportunity to meet the stars.
The event, organized under the coordination of the TUBITAK National Observatory (TUG), features 30 telescopes and 60 astronomers accompanying the participants, helping them with observations and making important presentations.
2 thousand people applied for the event and 500 participants were selected by lottery. 300 tents were set up for the participants.
Colorful activities prepared by TÜBİTAK await the participants
At the TÜBİTAK booth, the Advanced Technologies Research Center for Informatics and Information Security (BİLGEM) is organizing a "YOU ARE THE UNIVERSE" activity with OZAN to find treasure in the sandbox and send their painted images into space.
With the mobile application developed by Bilim Genç under the coordination of the Presidency of Science and Society (BİTO), visitors to the Bilim Genç stand participate in the astronomy quiz. Bilim Youth is also introduced to visitors.
Popular Science Magazines are planning special events for participants from their target audiences. On the first day of the event, a model of the Space Crown will be made and free magazines will be distributed to participants in the 4-8 age group, the target audience of Meraklı Minik magazine. On the second day of the event, the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Action game, which is offered as a supplement to the magazine, will be introduced to the 7-13 age group participants in the target audience of Bilim Çocuk magazine and magazines will be given as gifts. Participants who visit the workshops during the event will also be presented with the Science and Technology magazine free of charge, and the participants' curiosity about science and technology will be reinforced by explaining the use of the magazine's supplements, the Yearbook of Celestial Events and the Three Dimensional Solar System Calendar.
The Deneyap Technology Workshops Unit organizes activities such as making hands hydrophobic with Aurogel (Granule), Fluorescent lighting with plasma sphere, LED lighting with Ardunio, Lego EV3 Robot, Lathe machines, Magnetic field lines on paper with iron powder, Wood cutting and award figurine activities.
Science Centers teams from all over Turkey are also adding color to the festival with activities such as Aerodianamik and Paper Airplane Workshop, Life on the Moon and Water Bears (Tardigrades), Hand fan, Planet Mask, Sundial, Sundial making, Molecule model making of hormones, QR Code Solar System, RoboArena and Night Sky Observation with Telescopes.
Wastewater Filtration Game, Color Removal from Wastewater, Boron Fuel Cell Training Kit, Methanol Fuel Cell Training Kit, Detection of Microplastics, Application of Different Materials in Microscope, Fingerprint Powder Application and Demonstration of Yogurt Bacteria and Some Molds Isolated from Foods under the Microscope are carried out by TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center (MAM).
TÜBİTAK Defense Industry Research and Development Institute (SAGE) welcomes sky enthusiasts to the Rocket Model Workshop, where they are introduced to the science of rockets, and the VR Virtual Reality Experience, where they witness the moments when BOZDOĞAN, Turkey's first national air missile, hits the target precisely in the first test firing from an F-16 fighter jet.
TUBITAK National Metrology Institute is also one of the activities that attracts attention at the booth with its Hand Squeeze Force Meter and Body Resistance Meter.
TÜBİTAK Space Technologies Research Institute (UZAY), on the other hand, appeals to space and satellite technology enthusiasts with its Satellite Model Making Workshop and TÜRKSAT 6A model.
On the first day of the event, Minister Varank visited the TÜBİTAK stand and received information about the workshops.
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