National program to upskill 100,000 Saudis in AI ‘crucial,’ says official

RIYADH: Anja C. Andersen, a professor in astrophysics and professor for the public understanding of science at the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, is delighted at finally returning to Riyadh after four decades.

The Royal Danish Embassy hosted “A Night Under the Stars” on Monday to bring together science, culture, and curiosity in the Saudi capital.

An astronomer and astrophysicist from Horsholm in Denmark, Andersen — in an exclusive interview with Arab News — shared her journey in exploring the wonders of the cosmos and explained how the stars above Riyadh sparked her interest in space.

She said: “I spent my teenage years in Riyadh in a compound 25 km outside the city. I moved here when I was 13, and lived for a few years with my parents. My father was working with Ericsson Telephones.

“My parents had given me a small telescope. One of the really wonderful things about Saudi Arabia is that it’s almost never cloudy, and during the winter it’s actually quite pleasant to sit outside and look at the stars. And since you are closer to the equator, you can see both the constellation Crux of Southern Cross and the Big Dipper constellation. So it was much more pleasant to observe stars. You could see a lot more stars and that just made me passionate about space.”

She added: “I went to an international school in Riyadh, which gave me a much bigger insight into different cultures and people, which has been a great advantage for me in my work as an astrophysicist, because astrophysics and space science is very international.

“When my parents said we were moving to Saudi Arabia, I was like, that’s a terrible idea, I want to stay home with my friends. But, once we got here, I was very happy because my school — Riyadh International Community School — was very good. It was from 1979 to 1981. It was before the big airport came in. I remember they were building the airport then, but Riyadh was not that big a city as it is today.

“When I returned to Riyadh I looked it up. The school doesn’t exist now as it was long ago.

“(But) it’s wonderful to be back here. I am so happy to be back because I recognize almost nothing in Riyadh; everything has changed. Forty years ago the city was completely different. It has transformed into a big city now.

“On the airplane, when landing here, I sat next to a Saudi woman and she said she had been abroad for a few years. And when she came back to Riyadh, she couldn’t recognize it because it had grown so fast. It’s so different, but I still recognize it. So, it’s really nice to be back because I feel it’s very homey somehow. I am very excited to be here.”

Andersen’s parents moved to Sweden from Riyadh, living there a year before moving to Denmark. Andersen completed her education there, ending her journey at the Niels Bohr Institute.

Remembering Riyadh, she said: “It was actually the beauty of the night sky (that inspired my interest in space).

“When you have a telescope from which you can see the planets and craters on the moon, and the Milky Way, it was sort of the beauty of the heavens that got me interested. I believe that was a bit of luck that made me passionate about space. My interest in stargazing and astronomy developed in Riyadh as a high school student and it evolved over the years, because then I was like, ‘Oh, I want to be an astronomer.’

“When I went to university I studied physics and specialized in astrophysics. And I must say, the more I get to know, the more exciting it gets. Things have developed a lot over space. Science also develops very fast. We have new telescopes, new satellites, new knowledge and it’s very exciting because we keep finding out new things.”

In a message to stargazers and skywatchers in Saudi Arabia, she said: “(You should) follow your curiosity and keep asking questions, because that’s how humans get smarter: by asking questions and trying to find answers to the questions. That’s my best advice, because the world is very, very interesting.

“One of the things when I came here as a sort of sulky teenager was thinking, ‘Oh, I’m going to do this.’

“And then when I got here, I realized that the desert was something different than I thought it was when I was in Denmark, because when I thought of the desert I thought of soft sand dunes. And then I realized that there are many different kinds; it’s just like there’s many different kinds of forests. And I learned to appreciate the beauty of the different types and found that very interesting.”

On the transformation in the Kingdom, the Danish scientist said: “I am actually very impressed about the development of the country. It has really done a lot over the last few years. I am very impressed about Saudi Vision 2030. I find it extremely ambitious, and I appreciate it a lot to have such a high ambition for a country; it’s very admirable.”

Regarding her visit, she said: “I got an invitation from the ambassador to come and give a talk, and I was like, ‘Oh yes, I really want to do that.’ I was so excited about the opportunity to come back and see the place, which I enjoyed so much when I was young.

“I am an expert on cosmic dust. There is a lot of dust in Saudi Arabia. That’s why I built my interest. But I think it’s more of a coincidence. I have always been interested in planets. I found it very exciting when I lived here. Why is Earth is so different from Jupiter?

“So, I wanted to understand why planets are so different. I wanted to understand planet formation. And planets are made of dust. So I ended up just thinking, first I have to understand dust formation, and I am still working on that. So I never go further than trying to understand the formation.”

Andersen believes the Kingdom’s night sky goes largely unappreciated as it is so familiar to the inhabitants of Saudi Arabia.

She advised: “Remember to enjoy it and remember to go a bit outside the city (Riyadh) because it’s difficult to see all the stars amid the light pollution.”