SKA collaboration

"The South African radio astronomy community is respected and entrenched in the international community, and with the establishment of the radio astronomy reserve in the Karoo (with its installed infrastructure and radioquiet environment), South Africa has become an attractive place to do radio astronomy. The PAPER and C-BASS experiments are two international projects that have been attracted by the excellent Karoo site and the scientific and technical capabilities of the South African radio astronomy community."
– Prof Justin Jonas, Associate Director: Science and Engineering, SKA South Africa.

The MeerKAT scientists and engineers are fully embedded in the international SKA project, participating in technical committees and working groups set up by the SKA Project Development Office (SPDO) and supported by the PrepSKA (European FP7) and TDP (USA/NSF) programmes.

Bilateral agreements have been established with key institutions involved with the SKA to improve collaboration efficiency, including the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Manchester, the University of California at Berkeley and Caltech, as well as with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) of the USA.

In South Africa, the Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory and the South African Astronomical Observatory participate in the MeerKAT Project, while researchers and students at many universities in Africa also actively participate.

The SKA Project's head office is in Rosebank, Johannesburg, while the MeerKAT engineering office is in Pinelands, Cape Town.

The Department of Science and Technology funds the SKA Project via the National Research Foundation.

Want to know more?

Factsheet: Collaboration at all levels
A factsheet about collaboration at all levels - a true global SKA partner.

Factsheet: Industry partnerships
A factsheet about SKA South Africa industry partnerships.