Speaker
Description
The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) is the next-generation facility for ground-based very-high-energy gamma-ray astronomy, with construction and early operations underway at sites in La Palma and Chile. Covering roughly 20 GeV to 300 TeV, CTAO will deliver unprecedented sensitivity and angular resolution across both hemispheres. This general talk will introduce CTAO’s observational technique, planned capabilities, and scientific motivation, highlighting its potential to study cosmic particle acceleration, extreme astrophysical environments, dark matter, and fundamental physics. I will also discuss the UK’s role in CTAO, including major instrumentation contributions to the Small-Sized Telescope cameras, and CTAO’s wider relevance for astroparticle phenomenology.