The ASTRI Program

The ASTRI (Astrofisica con Specchi a Tecnologia Replicante Italiana) program was born as a collaborative international effort led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) to design and realize, within the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) framework, an end-to-end prototype of the Small-Sized Telescope (SST) in a dual-mirror configuration (2M). While the activities concerning the characterization of the prototype are under completion, the program entered a new phase. With the final aim of contributing at the production of the SST telescopes for the CTAO Southern site, we started the development of nine telescopes based on the evolution of the ASTRI prototype design to work as pathfinder for the CTAO. Furthermore, together with the CHEC (Compact High Energy Camera) collaboration, the ASTRI team presented a proposal, that will be evaluated with other proposals, to deliver to CTAO the complete set of SST telescopes

Climate change multi-risk assessment for mango cultivation in Sicily, Italy by using bayesian network

Ensuring food security poses a significant challenge for organizations and consultant companies involved in the agriculture industry or responsible for food programs. This challenge is particularly relevant in Sicily, Italy, which has a semi-tropical climate. Given the favorable weather conditions for mango cultivation and other tropical crops, it becomes crucial to consider measures for safeguarding against potential climate change impacts in the future. Climate change is expected to bring changes and increased risks in terms of temperature, extreme events, soil salinity, and irregular rainfall. Amidst this looming threat, there is a growing demand for a fresh approach and supportive tools to manage risks and mitigate potential damages in policy-making and decision-making circles. In this study, we employ a robust method known as Bayesian Network (BN) to effectively capture and model multiple risks under various future scenarios. By exploring 'what-if' situations, such as the maximum levels of climate-related variables, the projected BN model is trained and validated using spatially-resolved data from the Messina region in Sicily. This approach enables us to understand the dynamic variations in localscale temperature and precipitation, as well as the underlying driving forces, within the timeframe of 2009-2022. The outputs of the Bayesian Network aid in predicting future trends in temperature and precipitation levels, thereby supporting the prioritization of mango cultivation and conservation efforts. In general, the findings derived from the BN analysis provide valuable support for disaster risk management and mitigation strategies in the face of climate change and extreme events. This tool can further enhance decision-making processes by integrating the spatial results of the developed model into a user-friendly interface such as Geographic Information System (GIS), thereby assisting policymakers and decision-makers in prioritizing Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation plans

Eco-Friendly 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition Reactions on Graphene Quantum Dots in Natural Deep Eutectic Solvent

Due to their outstanding physicochemical properties, the next generation of the graphene family-graphene quantum dots (GQDs)-are at the cutting edge of nanotechnology development. GQDs generally possess many hydrophilic functionalities which allow their dispersibility in water but, on the other hand, could interfere with reactions that are mainly performed in organic solvents, as for cycloaddition reactions. We investigated the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (1,3-DCA) reactions of the C-ethoxycarbonyl N-methyl nitrone 1a and the newly synthesized C-diethoxyphosphorylpropilidene N-benzyl nitrone 1b with the surface of GQDs, affording the isoxazolidine cycloadducts isox-GQDs 2a and isox-GQDs 2b. Reactions were performed in mild and eco-friendly conditions, through the use of a natural deep eutectic solvent (NADES), free of chloride or any metal ions in its composition, and formed by the zwitterionic trimethylglycine as the -bond acceptor, and glycolic acid as the hydrogen-bond donor. The results reported in this study have for the first time proved the possibility of performing cycloaddition reactions directly to the p-cloud of the GQDs surface. The use of DES for the cycloaddition reactions on GQDs, other than to improve the solubility of reactants, has been shown to bring additional advantages because of the great affinity of these green solvents with aromatic systems

Dispositivo VeeToTee - Controllo di Potenza per carichi non induttivi

Dispositivo di interfaccia tra controller di temperatura a microprocessore LakeShore e elementi riscaldanti di elevata potenza (oltre 1 KW) alimentati dalla tensione di rete. Il sistema converte la tensione di controllo (0 - 5 V) in cicli di on/off sul circuito a tensione di rete. Si sceglie questa tecnologia, piuttosto che quella switching ad alta frequenza, per minimizzare il rumore sulla rete di alimentazion

ASTRI Mini-Array SCADA/Central Control software system: Statement of Work

The ASTRI Mini-Array (MA) is an INAF ground-based project to construct, deploy and operate a set of nine identical dual-mirror Cherenkov gamma-ray telescopes. The ASTRI Mini-Array will exploit the imaging atmospheric Cherenkov technique to measure the energy, direction and arrival time of gamma-ray photons arriving at the Earth from astrophysical sources. The ASTRI Mini-Array will also perform Stellar Hambury-Brown intensity interferometry and direct measurements of cosmic rays. The site selected for the installation and operation of the ASTRI Mini-Array is the Observatorio del Teide in Tenerife (Spain). This Statement of Work (SoW) describes the activities and the deliverables and work logic necessary for the provision of the “Central Control software system” required by INAF (referred to as “the Customer”) in the context of the ASTRI Mini-Array Project. This SoW will serve as an applicable document throughout the execution of the work by the Contractor to provide the core packages of the ASTRI Central Control software system design, development, integration, and on-site deployment, acceptance and maintenance during the warranty period

Notas sobre la taxonomía de la población en Sicilia de Asperula gussonei (Rubiaceae): A. peloritana sp. nov.

Taxonomical investigation on Asperula gussonei, a rare Sicilian endemism, allowed us to verify that the Madonie population is well differentiated from the Mt. Scuderi one. These two populations are here treated as distinct species: A. gussonei Boiss. from Madonie and A. peloritana sp. nov. from Mt. Scuderi. The main morphological and ecological differences between the two species are pointed out. Their iconographies and relationships with the allied species are given too.Una investigación taxonómica sobre Asperula gussonei, especie rara endémica de Sicilia, nos permitió comprobar que la población de las Madonias se diferencia bien de la de Mt. Scuderi. Estas dos poblaciones son consideradas aquí como especies diferentes: A. gussonei Boiss. de las Madonias y A. peloritana sp. nov. del Mt. Scuderi. Se indican las principales diferencias morfológicas y ecológicas entre las dos especies. Se muestran también sus iconografías y relaciones con las especies afines