The newly-built Suriyatas Rajamangala Observatory

The newly-built Suriyatas Rajamangala Observatory, a project undertaken by the university’s Faculty of Science, is ready to be the center for research as well as knowledge exchange in the field of astronomy. Inside, it houses Thailand’s biggest telescope, “Rotar I”, with a diameter of 600mm., the country’s first telescope dedicated to observing solar activities.

“The name Suriyatas Rajamangala was bestowed upon us by HM the King, and this is a tremendous honor to the university,” says Assoc. Prof. Numyoot Songthanapitak, President of Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi. Suriyatas Rajamangala means ‘a solar observatory which brings glory to HM the King’.

Together with its sister observatory, which is located at Wang Klai Kang Won School in Hua Hin, Suriyatas Rajamangala Observatory serves as the center for studying solar activities as well as exchanging knowledge with other solar observatories across the globe, including India’s Udaipur Solar Observatory and Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, United States of America. The gathered data will be used in predicting the sun’s future activities and their potential impacts on the Earth.

“The university also hopes that the observatory will act as a national learning center for disseminating knowledge in astronomy,” Prof. Numyoot says, adding that the university’s has sent its staff to learn from fellow experts at both Udaipur Solar Observatory and Kitt Peak National Observatory. “This is to ensure that Suriyatas Rajamangala Observatory is fully prepared to support both national and international level research, a duty that fulfills the government’s visions for education reforms as well as economic and social developments,” he adds.