ZAGREB, March 7, 2020 - The European Space Agency (ESA) is counting on Croatia, Head of ESA Brussels Office, Michel Praet said at the end of a two-day workshop - "Space Powering Green Deal and Digital Economy" held at the Zagreb University Faculty of Engineering and Computing.

The two-day workshop on using space technology in collecting data on climate change was organised jointly with the Faculty, the European Space Agency and Croatia's Ministry of Science and Education and was held under the auspices of Croatia's presidency of the Council of the European Union.

The idea behind the workshop was to highlight the importance of space technology in the development of various industrial branches and it attracted leading Croatian and European researchers and entrepreneurs who, thanks to cooperation with ESA, have managed to launch and maintain successful companies.

Praet stated that he was honoured to work for the agency which has the ambition of using know-how in resolving problems and he believes that ESA is a fantastic tool in that regard. That is why, he added, he is proud that Croatia signed an agreement in 2018 to join the ESA and he is certain that Croatia can profit from Europe's space policy. That Cooperation Agreement with ESA signed on 19 February 2018, enables Croatia and ESA to create the framework for a more intensive and concrete cooperation related to ESA programmes and activities.

Science Ministry State Secretary Tome Antičić said that he was certain of good future cooperation between ESA and Croatia and that if Zagreb used that opportunity for cooperation, that can help the country to be much more successful.

More science news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

Sisak-Moslavina County is one of the poorest in Croatia. However, yesterday it established the Centre for Space and Innovative Technologies. Although the news that a county with many villages without electricity, water and roads has opened a space technology centre sounds like an April Fool’s joke, county officials seem offended by such comparisons, reports Jutarnji List on May 17, 2019.

County prefect Ivo Žinić pointed out that the project “Sisak-Moslavina County - Gaming Industry Centre” has become one of the most innovative projects in Croatia and that the establishment of the Centre for Space and Innovative Technologies will enable the county to become the centre of competence for certain other technologies as well.

“The activities led by the centre can attract a large number of young scientists, and the opening of new jobs will prevent them from leaving the country. The future of Croatia, the future of Sisak-Moslavina County, is in modern technologies,” concluded Žinić.

The decision by the County Assembly has caused an avalanche of comments and jokes on social networks. “A very inventive way to employ party personnel, if there are still few unemployed members left. They need the space centre because HDZ members seem to have come from Mars.”

Some commentators have also advised the authorities to be sure to “set up the Central Agency for the Coordination of County Centres for Space Technology with one coordinator for each county, and a deputy, and a secretary, and a secretary’s deputy.” Others say that the “space centre will gravitate toward HDZ members,” and that the elections are coming soon, but that this idea is too much even for an election campaign.

However, there are other opinions. Danko Bosanac, an astrophysicist from the Ruđer Bošković Institute, support the idea. Several years ago, he initiated the establishment of a similar, never opened centre in Udbina. “I am directly responsible for launching this centre because I have started the Adriatic Aerospace Association.It is fine to express doubts, but it has to be done in a civilized way, because this initiative is supported by A3, with about 60 highly-qualified members from the areas of space technology and science, and with numerous contacts around the world.

The discussion about the Sisak centre lasted for about a year. The centre will primarily focus on the commercialization of top-quality materials that will have the ‘terrestrial’ application. The Faculty of Metallurgy and the Ruđer Bošković Institute will represent a link towards scientific research. There will be a co-operation between science and technology. We should be happy and help this initiative; someone has decided to make a step forward,” said Bosanac.

The information on the establishment of the centre has been published on the Adriatic Aerospace Association’s website. It is a non-profit association that focuses on four main areas: promoting research and development in the aerospace sector, mediating in projects as a point of contact, education and consulting, and regional co-operation.

Translated from Jutarnji List (reported by Anita Belak-Krile).

More news about Sisak-Moslavina County can be found in the Lifestyle section.

In the early hours of Monday morning, the total lunar eclipse will be visible from Croatia. The phenomenon occurs when the Moon enters the shadow of the Earth, becoming red and brown in colour, the Croatian Astronomical Association announced, reports Jutarnji List on January 20, 2019.

Due to the bad weather, public observations with telescopes have been organised just in Split and Mali Lošinj. If the weather conditions are favourable, the Mosor Star Village plans to host the public observation with telescopes in Split, near the Spinut port, between 4.30 and 7.30 am, while the Leo Brenner Astronomical Society will do the same at the waterfront in front of the Apoxyomenos Museum in Mali Lošinj.

The lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow and is then illuminated by the red light which disperses while travelling through the Earth's atmosphere. The total lunar eclipse happens when the whole Moon enters the shadow of the Earth; when just one part of the Moon's disc enters the shadow, that is a partial eclipse.

During a total eclipse, the Moon never enters the total darkness, but is seen in red and brown colour, which is why the phenomenon is sometimes called the "blood moon." That is caused by the refraction of light in the Earth's atmosphere, which in this case acts as a prism. The Earth's atmosphere mostly scatters the blue light (which is why the sky is blue during the day), while the red light that is not scattered completely continues its way to the Moon and makes it red.

In Croatia, the beginning of the partial eclipse will take place at 4.33 am, while the start of the total eclipse will occur at 5.41 am; the maximum of the total eclipse will take place at 6.12 am, and it will end at 6.43 am.

This eclipse will be the only total lunar eclipse in 2019 and will be visible from the entire western hemisphere, Europe and the western parts of Africa, as well as from northern Russia, announced NASA, meaning it could, with favourable weather conditions, be potentially observed by some 2.8 billion people around the world.

It will be best seen from North America, NASA says, adding that as a bonus the eclipse will occur during the supermoon phase when the Moon is closest to the Earth which makes it appear bigger and brighter.

More news on the astronomy in Croatia can be found in the Lifestyle section.

Translated from Jutarnji List.

Local and tourists alike take part in the spectacle.

NASA's satellite data receiving software is slow, while Blink from Croatia is exceptionally fast, so NASA sees it as a possible replacement.

ZAGREB, February 19, 2018 - Croatia and the European Space Agency (ESA) signed an agreement concerning space cooperation for peaceful purposes in Zagreb on Monday in the presence of representatives of Croatian scientific and economic institutions. The agreement was signed by the Minister of Science and Education, Blaženka Divjak, and the head of the ESA External Relations Department, Frederic Nordlund.

Unsurprisingly, flat-earthers do live in Croatia as well.

On Monday, the Earth’s shadow will cover about a quarter of the Moon.

Croatian astrophysicists join in major global research project.