Nigeria’s Centre for Basic Space Science, CBSS, is set to launch the biggest telescope in Africa.
The telescope will be unveiled by the Deputy Senate President, Chief Ike Ekweremadu, on May 2.
The Director of CBSS, Prof Fidelix Opara, who disclosed this in an interview with journalists on Tuesday said the telescope would play strategic role in boosting space science research in the continent.
According to him, “This telescope will help the centre carry out studies as well as monitor efficiently every happening in space and other areas of interest.
“Many developed countries have recorded fast technological development because of their exploit in space science research”.
Opara commended the Deputy Senate President for donating part of his constituency project fund to the centre to fund construction and mounting of the telescope by engineers from the centre.
“The centre commends Ekweremadu, who believed that the development of space science will serve as driving force for economic growth and technological devlopment”, he said.
On the present insurgency in the country, the CBSS director suggested the mounting of surveillance security cameras in strategic locations in the affected states as well as in Abuja to help security agents in their functions.
“Security agents are not spirits and such will not be everywhere every time; with surveillance cameras they will know what happened in their absence.
“Nigerians should see security as everybody’s business since security agents cannot do it alone without useful information from the public.
“With cooperation of everybody in the country, the present security challenges will soon be overcome”, he said.