- Published : 04.07.2025.
Republic of Croatia Officially a Founding Member of CTAO ERIC – the World’s Most Powerful Gamma-Ray Observatory
The Republic of Croatia was officially confirmed as a founding member of CTAO ERIC on June 26, 2025, two years after first applying for membership status.
On January 7, 2025, the European Commission established the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) as a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC), furthering its mission to become the world’s largest and most powerful Observatory for gamma-ray astronomy.CTAO was established as the 29th ERIC, which is of exceptional importance for strengthening the Observatory’s legal framework and accelerating the construction of over 60 telescopes across its two sites - the island of La Palma in Spain and the Paranal mountain peak in the Atacama Desert in Chile.
The establishment of CTAO ERIC enables the Observatory’s construction to advance rapidly and provides a framework for distributing its data worldwide, significantly accelerating its progress toward scientific discovery.
CTAO ERIC contributes to cutting-edge research, technological development, and innovation while addressing societal challenges, thus creating added value in the development of the European Research Area (ERA) and beyond. It also ensures the full scientific utilization of CTAO and its instruments, supports the dissemination of scientific research results, and makes optimal use of resources, knowledge, and expertise.
CTAO will be the largest and most sensitive Observatory for studying very high-energy gamma rays, enabling scientists to gain deeper understanding of extreme phenomena in the universe such as supernovae, black holes, and dark matter.
By joining CTAO ERIC, the Republic of Croatia will actively participate in managing this prestigious infrastructure, share knowledge and resources with leading scientists from Europe and worldwide, and contribute to the understanding of key cosmic questions. The Republic of Croatia will also continue to engage in the design and construction of the Large-Sized Telescopes (LST) and contribute to the physics working group.
Through the use of national and international research infrastructures, the Republic of Croatia will stand out in internationally competitive research and strengthen international cooperation as well as the visibility of Croatian science, economy, and society as a whole.