This Monday (23), the world lived one of the most anticipated moments of modern astronomy: the Disclosure of the first images made by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. With live transmission by Digital LookWe had a small sample of what promises to be the largest and most complete “sky map.” And Brazil is involved in this project!
According to Brazil agencymore than 170 Brazilian researchers will be participating in the data processing of this revolutionary mission for global science, most of them students.
The project is part of the space and time legacy survey (LSST), an international effort with the mission of mapping about 37 billion stars and galaxies over ten years.
There are also professionals in our country working directly in the observatory, both in Chile and remotely in the US:
- Bruno Quint – Commissioning Scientist – Chile
- David Sanmartim – Commissioning Scientist – Chile
- Paulo Lago – Observation Specialist – Chile
- Tiago Ribeiro-Self-Programmed Observations Scientist and Software Architect-Tucson/USA
- Angelo Fausti – Software Engineer – Tucson/USA
- Johnny Esteves-a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard University-USA
In addition, the São Paulo Research and Education Network (REDNESP), a high -speed connection infrastructure maintained by the São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (FAPESP), will be critical to ensuring that data collected in Chile will reach the US in less than seven seconds, with warnings about astronomical events being sent in less than a minute.
Students from Brazil will help process the images
Brazil’s participation began in 2015, through an agreement that includes the Interinstitutional Laboratory of E-Astronomy (Linea), supported by the National Observatory (ON), the National Laboratory of Scientific Computing (LNCC) and the National Teaching and Research Network (RNP). The national coordination of the project is made by the Brazilian participation group at LSST (BPG-LSST).
Involving scientists from 28 countries, LSST has researchers from 26 universities in 12 Brazilian states. The main challenge will be to deal with the gigantic data volume that the telescope will generate every night, requiring advanced processing and storage solutions.
One of the participants is Professor Daniel de Oliveira, from the Computing Institute of the Fluminense Federal University (UFF), who will be responsible for helping in the organization and processing of data. He and his team develop tools to accelerate analysis and ensure that results are obtained in a timely manner.
Although there are remote meetings with foreign colleagues, most of the research takes place in Brazil. The teacher also works in partnership with Linea experts, who support astronomical issues.
According to Oliveira, the LSST telescope will be the most powerful ever built for this type of survey. It is expected that he manages about 15 terabytes (TB) of data by night. This is equivalent to images with 3.2 billion pixels, which will allow the identification of objects and regions of the hitherto unknown universe.
To manage this immense volume of information, Brazil implemented the Independent Data Access Center (Idac-Brazil), created by Linea. This center will be one of the ten existing in the world with direct access to LSST data, which reinforces the strategic importance of Brazilian participation.
Idac-Brazil is already in operation, but now goes through a phase of expansion. New equipment is being purchased, and teams are in training to operate the systems. In addition, a special software layer is being developed to ensure support for operations, which will officially begin in 2026.
“Radical change in the form of science”
According to Luiz Alberto Nicolaci da Costa, director of Linea and coordinator of the National Institute of Technology of E-Universe (INCT of E-Universe), LSST represents a radical change in the way of making science. It highlights international collaboration and the large volume of data as the main differentials of the project.
With its eight -meter mirror in diameter and a very high resolution camera (the largest in the world), the overelescope will observe the southern hemisphere sky. According to Nicolaci, there will be no similar project for the northern hemisphere, “because the center of the Milky Way is located here in the southern hemisphere”.
One of the most striking features of the LSST will be the repetition of the observations. Every three days, the telescope will point back to the same regions of heaven again. With this, each point will be recorded over a thousand times over a decade, creating a true “movie of the universe moving.”
Another highlight is the camera’s field of view, which covers an area equivalent to 40 full moons. According to Nicolaci, the images will be captured in less than a minute, allowing you to catch fast phenomena such as explosions and displacements of celestial objects, something unheard of in the history of astronomy.
He points out that the success of Brazilian participation depends on the continuous support of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI). Up to 175 researchers from the country are expected to be involved, 80% students – totally for free. “The only cost we will have is the operation of a data center in Brazil. It is local money. You will not pay anything,” explains Nicolaci, who sees in the project a unique opportunity for Brazilian science.
Brazil guarantees agility in data transmission
To deal with this huge flow of information, you need a fast and reliable connection. The solution comes from Rednesp, a high -performance data transmission system funded by FAPESP. Thanks to her, the material generated in Chile crosses borders and arrives in the US in a matter of seconds. Astronomical discoveries alerts also circulate in record time, allowing other telescopes in the world to react in time.
According to one communication From FAPESP, Rednesp reaches a speed of up to 400 gigabits per second. For comparison, the best residential internet connections hardly exceed 1 gigabit per second. Even high -performance companies usually operate with up to 10 Gbps. That is, Rednesp’s capacity is up to 40 times higher than that of a premium business connection.
In addition to Vera Rubin, this infrastructure serves 36 educational and research institutions in the state of São Paulo. This includes scientists working in other international projects, such as the Great Hallow Color of the European Nuclear Research Center (CERN), which also depends on the transmission of large data volumes.
Since its inception in 1988, Rednesp has received investments of about $ 125 million from FAPESP. Currently, annual financing is around $ 4 million. This investment benefits the entire academic community of SP, not just the Vera Rubin project.
Because of this technological contribution, FAPESP was able to indicate 25 scientists from São Paulo to be part of the Observatory’s international team. There are five main researchers and their postdoctoral and doctoral groups, selected by public calls of proposals.
Read more:
VERA C. RUBIN OBSERVATORY WILL INVESTIGATE MATTERS AND DARK ENERGY
The main objective is to map the structure of the universe and investigate mysteries such as dark energy and dark matter, which together dominate the cosmos. The telescope will also help track asteroids close to Earth, observe supernova explosions and capture rare events, such as the collision of neutron stars. In addition, it will allow you to detect changes in the shine of stars, which may indicate the presence of planets around them.
A growing challenge will be to deal with light pollution caused by thousands of orbit satellites. The lights reflected by these objects can leave unwanted marks in the photos. To minimize this problem, the Observatory team is developing correction software and negotiating with satellite companies to reduce reflexes.
These solutions will be important not only for this specific project, but also for the future of astronomy in general.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is the result of a partnership between the US National Science Foundation (NSF), the Energy Department (DOE) and institutions from various countries.
Vera Rubin: The scientist who inspired the name of the Observatory
The name of the observatory is a tribute to the American astronomer Vera Cooper Rubin. She was a pioneer in presenting the first solid evidence of the existence of dark matter, one of the great puzzles of modern science. His work has changed the way we understand the mass distribution and movement of the galaxies. Learn more about her here.
