Africa Millimetre Telescope puts Namibia on the frontier of space science

Namibia’s Africa Millimetre Telescope (AMT) is placing the country at the forefront of global space science, advancing black hole research, expanding scientific training and building continental research capacity.

Late last month, University of Namibia (Unam) vice-chancellor Prof Kenneth Matengu and University of South Africa (Unisa) principal and vice-chancellor Prof Puleng LenkaBula formally signed an addendum to their existing memorandum of understanding, further strengthening collaboration on the Africa Millimetre Telescope (AMT) project atop Gamsberg Mountain.

The AMT, a 14-metre millimetre-wave telescope, will join the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) network, which famously produced the first image of a black hole in 2019.

Marc Klein Wolt, AMT project director, highlighted the scientific potential: “Adding the AMT to the network will allow us to do longer observations during the night, which will allow us to create movies of what black holes look like," he explained.

"This will help us understand better which theory describes the black hole in the best way.”

Wolt said the telescope will uniquely position Namibia within international astrophysics, contributing to cutting-edge research on black holes and galaxies in the early universe.

Joining space exploration

Unam spokesperson Simon Amesho noted that the AMT project in Namibia is a transformative platform that firmly positions Namibia within the global astronomy and space-science ecosystem.

"Students and early-career researchers will gain hands-on exposure to instrumentation, data processing and scientific observation, ensuring skills transfer is practical, sustained and locally anchored," he said.

Amesho added that the project will also expand postgraduate research pathways in astronomy, astrophysics, and space science, while promoting interdisciplinary skills in data science, engineering, and high-performance computing.

For Unisa, the collaboration enhances continental participation in frontier science.

The partnership allows the university to provide both financial support and technical expertise during commissioning and operations while leveraging its distance-learning capacity to train students across Africa.

LenkaBula described the AMT as “Africa’s intellectual ambition… an investment not only in infrastructure but also in people and sustainable scientific ecosystems that will serve Africa for generations.”

Look beyond

The Gamsberg site was selected for its high altitude, dry air and stable conditions, ideal for millimetre-wave radio astronomy. Wolt emphasised that initial operations will occur at Van Golshuis near the H.E.S.S. observatory before moving the telescope to the mountain.

“This is a Namibian telescope… we collaborate with our Namibian partners to really push this telescope forward. That will give a lot of opportunities for Namibian students," he said.

Beyond research, the AMT is also a community and education project. The mobile planetarium, integrated with the AMT initiative, has already engaged over 35 000 Namibian learners, inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers.

With the AMT, Namibia and its partners aim to transform local scientific capacity, foster high-impact research and solidify Africa’s role in global astrophysics.