Australia is another step closer to helping create the world’s largest radio telescope, which will allow further exploration of the universe while creating jobs in Western Australia and growing the economy.
The week Australia ratified the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Observatory Convention.
Under the Convention, WA will host 130,000 antennas and South Africa the 200 dishes – together making the telescope that will allow astronomers to view the cosmos in more detail than ever before.
Australia is the fourth country to complete its national process of ratification, joining the Netherlands, Italy and fellow SKA telescope host country South Africa.
The Convention, signed by seven countries in Rome on 12 March 2019, establishes the SKA Observatory – the intergovernmental organisation responsible for building and operating the SKA telescopes. It enters into force once five countries, including the three hosts Australia, South Africa and the UK, ratify the text. With the UK expected to complete its ratification in the coming weeks, it is hoped the SKA Observatory will come into being before the end of the year.
Australia is home to two SKA precursor telescopes located on site at the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory in Western Australia: CSIRO’s 36-dish Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP), and the Murchison Widefield Array, an international collaboration involving 21 institutions. These facilities are carrying out world-class research and providing invaluable science and technology insights for the development of the SKA.
Earlier this year ICRAR announced that some 200 terabytes of data collected by the Murchison Widefield Array and processed by DUG in record time was significant in scientists finding evidence of the first stars and galaxies.
Hon Karen Andrews MP (Minister for Industry, Science and Technology) and Hon Dave Kelly MP (Minister for Science) jointly announced the ratification this week. Read the full release here.
Minister Andrews said in her announcement that “Australia will play a leading role in developing new digital capabilities to process the unprecedented volumes of data produced by the SKA, with the potential for these processes to support other manufacturers.”
Team DUG stands ready for the exciting developments to come!
Main picture: An artists impression of the SKA telescope at night. Credit SKA Telescope public website.
