South African Tradesmen, Artisans Feel SKA's Impact

South African rhinoceros. Pic: sxc.hu

SKA looks likely to create a renaissance in South African artisanship (trades skills).

Tens of thousands of skilled workers could be required for the Square Kilometre Array and associated construction according to Jasper Horrell, the general manager of science, computing and innovation at SKA South Africa.

After completing the 64-dish MeerKAT, 250 mid-frequency antennas will be built in South Africa and nearby countries, and then 500 other receivers... besides which the IT component is so huge it hasn't been designed yet... because the tech doesn't exist...

Read the full story from iol.co.za after the jump:
http://www.iol.co.za/business/business-news/ska-project-to-bolster-training-of-sa-artisans

India to Become SKA Member.

India.

In what is great news for the scientific community and science itself, India appears to be poised to move from associate to full membership in the Square Kilometre Array non-profit organization according to a report from: telegraphindia.com

Members of the SKA Organisation:
• Australia: Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
• Canada: National Research Council
• China: National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences
• Italy: National Institute for Astrophysics
• Netherlands: Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research
• New Zealand: Ministry of Economic Development
• Republic of South Africa: National Research Foundation
• Sweden: Onsala Space Observatory
• United Kingdom: Science and Technology Facilities Council

Associate member:
• India: National Centre for Radio Astrophysics

India's full membership will bring a wealth of established expertise in radio astronomy via the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) see: my GMRT page and other projects - as well as help foster an interest in radio astronomy and cosmology amongst the world's brainiest people.

We will find out about India's membership status for sure at the SKA board meeting in Perth WA this October.





Sources:
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120715/jsp/nation/story_15730813.jsp#.UAIFkpF2FlI
http://www.skatelescope.org/the-organisation/

Botswana Prepares for SKA

Elephants in Botswana.  Image: stock.xchng

Government employees in Botswana are working overtime preparing for the start of SKA construction there, set for 2014. Four sites are proposed for SKA receiver installations in Botswana - in Ngamiland, Kweneng, Tsabong and Ghanzi Districts. 

Besides infrastructure construction, the SKA project is also creating a new area of scientific research. The University of Botswana now offers courses in radio astronomy (although details are not on their website yet), and the South African Government is also providing four scholarships so far to Batswana (citizens of Botswana) in science-based disciplines. 

Stay tuned for further developments! 

Sources: www.mmegi.bw

Observatory: MeerKAT

MeerKAT is the Southern Hemisphere's most powerful radio telescope. It will form 25% of the SKA Phase 1 dish array in South Africa.KAT-7 is the current configuration of seven receivers.

Technical Specifications

Number of antennae	64
Dish diameter	13.5 m
Minimum baseline	29 m
Maximum baseline	20 km
Frequency bands (receivers)	0.58 – 1.015 GHz, 1 – 1.75 GHz, 8 – 14.5 GHz

Links:
http://www.ska.ac.za/meerkat/index.php MeerKAT home
http://www.ast.uct.ac.za/laduma/Home.html   The Laduma survey
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MeerKAT  Wiki page

Observatories: The Square Kilometre Array (SKA)

It's radio astronomy, so bigger receivers are better. That's also why the Atacama Large Millimetre/sub-millimetre Array ALMA is being built right now eta: next year.

SKA: 

• The SKA Organisation is a non-profit body.
• It has nine funding member countries, Australia, Canada, China, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden and the UK, and India is an associate member.
• ETA: 2024, construction starts 2016.
• The HQ is being built in Manchester, UK. 
• Receivers are in South Africa, Australia & New Zealand so the center of the galaxy can be scanned.
• 70 MHz -30GHzrange
• 50 to 100x the resolution
• It will stretch across 5,000km and consist of 3,000 high frequency dishes, 40 million mid-frequency antennas and 2.5 million low-frequency antennas.
• 10,000x quicker scanning