What is GalileoMobile?

By Fabio Del Sordo

After a morning of activities in Chile Chico, a little town of the Chilean Patagonia, once more I run into this question.
It is maybe the wind, which here constantly blows and brings dust, scents and thoughts from who knows where.

The shore of Chile Chico on Lago General Carrera 

Since many years, since its beginning, we have asked ourselves this question many times. We found an official answer that we use to introduce GalileoMobile to people around the world. Nonetheless, we keep asking the same question, which means that this answer is not really what we were looking for.

Hence: What is GalileoMobile?
GalileoMobile surely is Valko, professor in Chile Chico, waiting for Fernanda and myself to arrive by boat from the north, inviting the two of us for dinner at his place and lending us his own car to move around in Chile Chico and surroundings, a few minutes after we met for the first time.

No doubt that GalileoMobile is Mauricio, professor in Cariquima, who picked up Fernanda and Manu in Iquique with his own car and drove them to Cariquima and surroundings, for 4 days of activities.

Dinner at Valko’s in chile Chico

I am also pretty sure that GalileoMobile is Manu, who offered his apartment as headquarters for the activities in Lumiar. And no doubt that all the people who traveled to Lumiar, dedicating a big deal of their time to share astronomy in two schools, are GalileoMobile.
Just like all the other people who spent hours, days, weeks, to make yet another adventure happen.
How many similar stories have we heard during the history of our little, big project? They all are GalileoMobile.

Take, for example, Ana Maria and all the folks who warmly welcomed Francesca and Marja in Cusco. They, and their enthusiasm, certainly are GalileoMobile. So it is our Colombian team, who jumped through hoops to visit many schools and never lost its spirit, energy, excitement.

I saw GalileoMobile many times, and yet I can’t define it with a few words. I saw it whilst sipping coffee at German’s in Bogotá, playing guitar with John and José David at Estrella del Sur, talking about life with Betty in Mbale and debating about radioastronomy with Ghazali in Kampala.

The Magellanic Cloud shining in the southern sky

GalileoMobile is all the people who donated their own resources, time and energy, first of all.
It is a huddle of occurrences I am happy to have come across.