Visit of Sister Raffaella Petrini to the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT) in Tucson

Fruitful and continuous dialogue between faith and science

An opportunity to "to appreciate in a very tangible way the complexity of the new technology used by the Vatican Observatory, in collaboration with the Steward Observatory of the University of Arizona, to carry out long-term research programmes in the field of astronomy".  So Sister Raffaella Petrini, Secretary General of the Governorate, during her visit to the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (Vatt) on Mount Graham, in Arizona (USA), Saturday, March 16, 2024.

 The Observatory’s research group, said the University of Rome, "is carrying out numerous ongoing studies and fruitful international collaborations, becoming one of the largest and most modern observational astronomy centers in the world". This work, he pointed out, "is particularly important for the Vatican City State, because it fulfils two important tasks: not only contributes to scientific development in the field of astronomy, but above all promotes a fruitful and continuous dialogue between faith and science, both pillars of a true integral human development".

For the occasion, the Franciscan visited the telescope Alice P. Lennon and the astrophysics facility Thomas J. Bannan. Sister Petrini is a member of the Board of Directors of the Vatican Observatory Foundation and was accompanied by the Jesuit Father Paul Gabor, Deputy Director of the Observatory for Tucson, and by John Lally and Chris Kennedy, The Foundation’s Development Manager and Treasurer.

The Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT) is an astronomical research complex consisting of two parts: the Alice P. Lennon telescope and the Thomas J. Bannan astrophysical facility. The Vatican Observatory Foundation owns a majority share, along with the University of Arizona, of the Alice P. Lennon telescope, which is located in southeastern Arizona, where the sky conditions are among the best in the world for observation.