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University of Cape TownRef: https://uct.ac.za/contacts/paul-groot-0

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Collected on 1 August 2026

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Our copy (archived 1 August 2026)Official source

What this means

This document is a University of Cape Town (UCT) staff/profile page for Prof Paul Groot. It describes his role as the DSTI/NRF Chair in Fast Transients and Gravitational Wave Counterparts, including his research focus on detecting and characterising fast transient and gravitational-wave counterpart signals. It also lists key activities and highlights, such as work with MeerLICHT and BlackGEM, use of large language models (e.g., Google’s Gemini) for transient identification, a best-ever optical brightness limit for a fast radio burst, and commissioning of the UCT-built 'Flash' telescope (commissioned in 2025, bound for Sutherland in 2026).

Facts

Places

City of Cape Town, Western Cape

Reference

https://uct.ac.za/contacts/paul-groot-0

Key Takeaways

Document is a UCT profile page for Prof Paul Groot
Title/role: DSTI/NRF Chair in Fast Transients and Gravitational Wave Counterparts
Research focus: detecting and characterising fast transients and gravitational-wave counterparts
Facilities mentioned: Southern African Large Telescope, MeerKAT, MeerLICHT, BlackGEM
Highlight: first-ever application of large language models (Google Gemini) to MeerLICHT data
Highlight: best-ever limit on optical brightness of a one-off fast radio burst
Project: 'Flash' telescope commissioned in 2025; bound for Sutherland in 2026
Location/address: University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
Contact email: paul.groot@uct.ac.za
University of Cape Town (UCT)
Prof Paul Groot
DSTI/NRF
Department of Astronomy
Faculty of Science
Southern African Large Telescope
MeerKAT
MeerLICHT
BlackGEM
Google Gemini
European Southern Observatory (ESO)
ESO Council
Flash telescope
Sutherland