Romanian students who participated in the 2026 International Junior Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad won two gold, two silver, and one bronze medal, the Ministry of Education announced.
The fifth edition of the International Junior Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad, a competition initiated by Romania, took place from November 1 to 8, 2026, in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand, with participants from 25 countries.
The competition consisted of four tests: one theoretical test and three practical tests, namely daytime telescope observations, nighttime telescope observations, and a planetarium test.
The selection and training of the team representing Romania took place in Suceava and were organized by Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava, the Suceava County School Inspectorate, and the CYGNUS Scientific Society, in partnership with Suceava Sports High School.
“Congratulations to Şerban Mihai Brindescu, No. 16 ‘Take Ionescu’ Secondary School, Timişoara, gold medal; Ioan-Claudiu Pitic, No. 39 Secondary School, Bucharest, gold medal; Carla Teodora Dobre, ‘Mircea cel Bătrân’ National College, Constanţa, silver medal; Filip-Sebastian Nacu, ‘Petru Rareş’ National College, Piatra-Neamţ, silver medal; Tudor Constantinescu, International Computer Science High School, Bucharest, bronze medal,” the Ministry of Education said.
The Romanian team was coordinated by Professor Petru Crăciun, PhD, deputy chief school inspector at the Suceava County School Inspectorate, Professor Elisabeta Ana Naghi, an inspector within the Ministry of Education and Research, and Dr. Cătălina Ana Miriţescu, a researcher at Vrije Universiteit Brussel and a former international Olympiad participant, in the capacity of observer.
Scientific coordination was provided by Professor Petru Crăciun, from the Suceava County School Inspectorate, and Professor Cristian Pîrghie, from Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava.
At the level of the Ministry of Education and Research, organizational coordination was provided by the Directorate for Olympiads, Competitions, Partnerships and Extracurricular Education, through Professor Elisabeta Ana Naghi, MEC inspector.
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