Gemini News
July 2018
Korea Becomes a Full Participant
in Gemini
On Tuesday, July 24, 2018, the Republic of Korea became a full
participant in the Gemini Observatory. The press release follows.
(More images from the signing event are viewable here.)
San Francisco, Tuesday, July 24, 2018 -
An agreement between the Korea Astron-
omy and Space Science Institute (KASI)
and the agencies that own and operate
the international Gemini Observatory was
signed today that established the Repub-
lic of Korea as a full participant in the Gem-
ini Observatory.
“After being a part of Gemini for the past
four years as a Limited-term Collabora-
tor, the Korean astronomical community
is thrilled to become a full participant in
the twin Gemini telescopes in Hawai‘i
and Chile,” said Narae Hwang, Head of K-
GMT Science Group, Center for Large Tele-
scopes of KASI. “We look forward to years
of fruitful exploration of the cosmos with the powerful 8-meter Gemini telescopes!”
The signing ceremony closed the second day of The Science and Evolution of Gemini Obser-
vatory meeting being held this week in San Francisco, California. Over 100 scientists — many
from the partner communities in the US, Canada, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, and now Korea — are
participating in the meeting, and most attended the signing ceremony. The ceremony ended
with cheers, toasts, and much anticipation of the partnership’s future potential.
The Republic of Korea flag
is raised at Gemini Base
Facility in Hilo, Hawai`i.
Credit: Joy Pollard
“I am confident that the KASI’s partnership with the Gemini Observatory will help Korean re-
searchers to lead the exciting adventures to solve the mysteries of the Universe,” said Hyung
January 2019 / 2018 Year in Review
GeminiFocus
39