Jakarta –
Activating astronomy in Islamic boarding schools is certainly not an ordinary thing. Especially if the activity only uses a smartphone or smartphone.
However, that is what Nur Sidqon, Director of the Yanbu’ul Qur’an Kudus Observatory has done. Since elementary school, Sidqon has loved learning about celestial bodies. According to the man who was born in Kendal, the sky and space have big mysteries that are very interesting to unravel.
However, because when he was still in elementary school there were no special astronomy lessons, various questions still arose when Sidqon graduated from elementary school. It was only when he was at the madrasah aliyah level in Kudus that he could seriously study astronomy or astronomy.
“I studied astronomy directly from KH Rofi Hazi, a student of one of the national astronomy figures,” said Sidqon, quoted from CNBC Indonesia. It was from this moment that he fell more and more in love with astronomy and various questions he had since elementary school were finally answered.
Milky Way Portrait with Smartphone
His love for astronomy then led Sidqon to enroll in the Department of Astronomy at UIN Walisongo Semarang through the student scholarship route. During his education, he was also active in developing interest in Islamic astronomy, starting from making telescopes, observing the sky, and others.
Sidqon realized that astronomy is a science that is not touched by society. He considered that many people consider astronomy to be difficult because the instruments are relatively expensive. The cheapest price on e-commerce is around IDR 10 million.
Expensive astronomical devices eventually made Sidqon form an activity called mobile astrophography. This activity utilizes smart phones to take pictures of space.
“In enjoying astronomy the most efficacious medium is with photos or documentation. Photos try to simplify complicated astronomy to make it more beautiful. And cellphone cameras allow people to enjoy it,” said Sidqon.
Initially, he used the Xiaomi Mi4 and it was thanks to that cellphone that he was able to capture celestial bodies, including the Milky Way galaxy.
Departing from this success, he founded the first mobile astrophography community in Indonesia. One by one people began to join in taking pictures of the sky with cellphones costing Rp. 1-3 million.
Cooperation with Members
The mobile astrophography community sparks people to like astronomy even in an amateur context. The students at the Aly TBS and Yanbu’ul Qur’an Islamic boarding schools were also not left behind.
For the students, knowing the appearance of the universe from their cellphones makes them know the greatness of God and make themselves aware that there is nothing.
“Santri are very enthusiastic. In fact, there are many subjects in Islamic boarding schools that intersect with astronomy or astronomy. However, not all Islamic boarding schools have observatories. Therefore, cellphones are a kind of bridge over this,” said Sidqon.
Sidqon also admitted that he had several times been invited to work with professional astronomers from various well-known universities. Since being involved, Nur Sidqon’s name has risen to prominence and is known as a pioneer of astronomical photography via cell phones.
Watch Video “The Enthusiasm of Hundreds of Santri Playing at TSB After Testing 3 Juz Al-Qur’an“
(nah/gas)
