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Preliminary site selection for an observatory in the Egyptian Eastern Desert

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Abstract

This work aims for choosing preliminary sites that can be candidates for a new astronomical observatory that will replace the Kottamia observatory. The candidate sites have been selected to be investigated after proposing a few criteria. Concerning light pollution and elevation of the sites as the main factors, we chose the candidate sites depending on the zenith sky brightness and the elevation. The night sky brightness has been measured using a Sky Quality Meter at different altitude degrees and the values of the zenith sky brightness were compared to those of different observatory sites. Our night sky brightness observations were found to be in agreement with the satellite’s data and comparable to those of dark sites, with average values of 22.07, 22.03, 21.57 and 21.58 magSQM/arcsec2. We also have obtained the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and extinction coefficient due to the aerosol for the candidate sites using satellite data (Terra/MODIS).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, Helwan, Cairo, Egypt

    Mohamed F. Aboushelib, Ahmed A. Abozaid, S. Nawar, Y. H. M. Hendy & A. B. Morcos

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  1. Mohamed F. Aboushelib
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  2. Ahmed A. Abozaid
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  3. S. Nawar
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  4. Y. H. M. Hendy
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  5. A. B. Morcos
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Correspondence to Mohamed F. Aboushelib.

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Aboushelib, M.F., Abozaid, A.A., Nawar, S. et al. Preliminary site selection for an observatory in the Egyptian Eastern Desert. Astrophys Space Sci 364, 163 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10509-019-3652-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10509-019-3652-7

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