World’s largest radio telescope is coming and will 'revolutionise understanding of universe'

Virgin Radio

6 Dec 2022, 13:42

The search for alien life and looking deeper into the universe than ever before is in our reach. The world’s largest radio telescope has begun construction after 30 years in the making and is set to be up and running by 2028.

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) apparatus is made up of 197 dishes and 131,027 antennas, and covers Australia and South Africa's Northern Cape, with the headquarters of the enterprise based outside of Manchester.

The SKA-Mid Array will be located in the Karoo desert in South Africa and the The SKA-Low Array in Western Australia north of Perth.

"The SKA project has been many years in the making," Catherine Cesarsky, chair of the SKAO council, said: "Today, we gather here to mark another important chapter in this 30-year journey that we’ve been on together. A journey to deliver the world’s largest scientific instrument. After 18 months of intense activities around the world, we are starting construction of the SKA telescopes.

"The SKA telescopes will truly revolutionise our understanding of the universe. They will allow us to study its evolution and some of its most mysterious phenomena in unprecedented detail, and that's really exciting for the scientific community."

Astrophysics Professor Cathryn Trott explained: "I have been involved in the SKA and its precursor telescopes for the past ten years, and as the chief operations scientist of the Australian telescope since July.

"I am helping to build the team of scientists, engineers and technicians who will construct and operate the telescope, along with undertaking science to map primordial hydrogen in the infant universe.

"Astronomers like me will use the telescopes to trace hydrogen over cosmic time and make precise measurements of gravity in extreme environments. What’s more, we hope to uncover the existence of complex molecules in planet-forming clouds around distant stars, which could be the early signs of life elsewhere in the universe."

Joseph McMullin, deputy director-general at the SKA Observatory (SKAO) intergovernmental organisation added: "Today has huge significance for all of us… working towards building a large, exploratory instrument that can serve our community and advance a number of scientific frontiers."

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