Abstract

  During the past decade, Astronomy in Thailand has been developed significantly. Since the establishment of the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand (NARIT) on January 1, 2009, apart from a long-term plan for the human resource development and human capacity building in astronomy, the major astronomical infrastructures have been developed in Thailand to serve research and development, support education and outreach activities in Thailand. The national observatory, with the 2.4-m telescope, has been established and operated in 2013. The 5 regional observatories for the public have been constructed in 5 different regions in Thailand to disseminate the opportunity of people all over the country the ability to access astronomy. The 0.7-m remote robotic telescopes have been placed in several best astronomical sites in the world with close research and academic international collaborations.

  Recently, a plan for radio telescopes as the 2nd national facility for Thailand and the establishment of the Thai VLBI Network (TVN) for the extension of multi-wavelength observations to reveal more complete picture of the universe has been raised among the radio astronomygroup under the support of NARIT. The proposal to the Thai Government on the establishment of the radio telescopes and the TVN has been now prepared. The submission of this proposal is expected in 2016. The international collaboration and joint venture, especially with the CVN and EAVN, in building a large radio telescope in Thailand is explored as the extension of the VLBI network in the near future.