Called “Phatima ka ti Nyeleti” (“brightness of the stars” in the Changana language), students from the Universidad de Santiago developed a sustainable lighting project for isolated areas with two objectives: reduce the electrification gap and protect Mozambique’s astronomical heritage.
“We propose an eco-friendly and innovative luminaire design based on renewable energies and made of recyclable materials, thus reducing and preventing the effects of light pollution,” says Amirah Luna Izidine, a Mozambican student of Astrophysics with a major in Data Science at the Usach and leader of this team with Nicholas Romero and Cristóbal Castro, students of the same degree, also participating in the project.
This proposal aims to reduce the electrification gap in Mozambique, where only 44% of the population has access to electricity, while protecting its astronomical heritage, an issue that will be addressed globally at the next General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), to be held in August 2024 in South Africa. During this event, the team of students will present their project.
“Dark skies conservation is related to the study of the universe. This conference has a session on precisely this topic, so our intention is to present our project and generate the greatest interest from the international community, especially considering it will be held in Africa for the first time,” says Amirah, whose project is sponsored by the Usach Faculty of Science and sponsored by Science and Innovation for 2030, Science Up Consortium.