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About

J. A. de Diego is an observational astronomer whose work centers on the development and application of wide-field optical instrumentation for time-domain astrophysics. His most significant contribution is the design and construction of the **Deca-Degree Optical Transient Imager (DDOTI)**, a pioneering robotic system described in his 2016 paper (17 citations). DDOTI consists of six co-mounted 28-cm telescopes, each with a 12 deg² field of view and 2 arcsec pixels, enabling rapid, sensitive surveys of the night sky. This instrument achieves a 10σ limiting magnitude of r ≈ 19 in just 60 seconds, making it uniquely capable of detecting and characterizing optical transients—such as gamma-ray burst afterglows, supernovae, and variable stars—across vast areas of sky. By providing a cost-effective, high-cadence survey capability, de Diego’s work has directly advanced the study of explosive and variable phenomena, bridging the gap between all-sky monitors and narrow-field follow-up telescopes. His contributions exemplify how innovative instrument design can unlock new observational frontiers, and his ongoing efforts continue to shape the future of transient astronomy.