CASSA launches 5-day workshop leading to the installation of a radio telescope

The Center for Astronomy, Space Science and Astrophysics (CASSA) of Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) has launched a five-day workshop, titled “Installing a Radio Telescope to Image the Invisible”, to kick off the installation of a Transient Array Radio Telescope (TART), the first instrument of its kind in Bangladesh.

The opening of the workshop was held at the DMK Lecture Gallery on November 17, 2025. The workshop aims to train participants in radio astronomy and array radio telescope techniques through lectures, hands-on sessions, and supervised installation activities led by Dr. Tim Molteno, Senior Lecturer at the University of Otago, New Zealand, and CASSA researchers.

START (Small TART) is made up of multiple simple antennas, often arranged in a spiral array, to detect radio signals from the sky. Unlike mirror- and lens-based telescopes, which collect visible light and form optical images, a START receives radio waves and uses electronics and software to combine signals from its antennas. This allows it to observe phenomena that optical telescopes cannot capture, such as faint cosmic radio emissions, transient signals, and large-scale structures that are invisible to the human eye. Once installed, the START at IUB will become one of only a handful of such telescopes in the world, and the first in the Northern Hemisphere.

Dr. Mustafa Habib Chowdhury, Head of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at IUB and a core member of CASSA, who moderated the opening session, said, “The event marks the start of Bangladesh’s entry into radio astronomy instrumentation as START is installed beside the CASSA Office at IUB.”

Dr. Khan Muhammad Bin Asad, Assistant Professor of Physical Sciences at IUB and Director of CASSA, said, “After building the array structure ourselves, we have been trying to install the telescope electronics for the last six months without much success due to some technical issues. However, as soon as Dr. Tim Molteno arrived in Bangladesh with a new electronics kit, we were able to solve the problem in a day.”

Dr. Tim Molteno, Principal Instructor of the workshop, presented an overview of the Transient Array Radio Telescope (TART), its development, design philosophy, and scientific capabilities. He compared TART with the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), MeerKAT, and the Very Large Array (VLA), outlining differences in sensitivity, field of view, cost, and scientific scope. He demonstrated the TART interface, highlighted its publicly accessible data structure, and noted that contributors from New Zealand, South Africa, and IUB have made Bangladesh the first Northern Hemisphere country to be included in the global TART network.

Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. M. Tamim said, “IUB is proud to present our version of the TART telescope, symbolizing the beginning of professional astronomy in Bangladesh. We hope to produce and train future astronomers through CASSA and its future projects, of which this workshop is only a first step.”

Dr. Farhad Alam, Head of the Department of Physical Sciences, said, “This initiative can create opportunities across multidisciplinary research and capacity building. It will also enhance the teaching methods of astronomy and astrophysics at IUB.”

Dr. Habib Bin Muzaffar, Dean (Acting) of the School of Engineering, Technology and Sciences of IUB, said, “I look forward to the day when the initiatives taken by CASSA will pave the way for IUB offering astronomy and astrophysics courses as majors in the future.”

Prof. Dr. M. Arshad Momen, Director of the Office of Graduate Studies, Research and Industry Relations at IUB, said, “Many people perceive physics [through the image of] scientists such as Albert Einstein, always sitting in isolation with a pen and paper. But those days of secluded research and academic pursuit from an ‘ivory tower’ are long gone. This event celebrates global collaboration across multidisciplinary branches of academia.”

Pro-Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Daniel W. Lund said, “Looking at the universe, we do not know what is around the corner or what we may find. When we look at a textbook, we see what someone has already written and others have already read. But looking into the universe is like looking into a wild forest. We don’t know what we may find. This workshop is an opportunity for discovery of the things we did not know.”

As tokens of appreciation for their support, CASSA presented each of the distinguished guests framed photos of celestial bodies such as the Sombrero Galaxy, Triffid Nebula, Black Eye Galaxy, Silver Sliver Galaxy, and the Antenna Galaxy pair. All these images were captured using the Unistellar Equinox Telescopes that IUB received as gifts from the Dunlap Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics of the University of Toronto, Canada, in 2023.

The ceremony concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by Dr. Asad, who did his PhD in Radio Astronomy at the University of Groningen, Netherlands. Guests and participants visited the CASSA Office where they were introduced with the START. The five-day workshop, from November 17–21, includes lectures, hands-on sessions, data collection, imaging exercises, and SKA-related simulations led by Dr. Molteno, Dr. Asad, and Dr. Benjamin Hugo of the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory.