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The following is a selection of links to online information published by the media in 2012/3.
Son of SKA chalks up galactic first
IOL, 20 May 2013
Radio astronomers associated with the huge Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope project are purring after the publication of the first scientific results from the relatively tiny KAT-7 pathfinder
instrument.
Radio astronomy publication a milestone for SA
Business Day, 17 May 2013
Astronomers working on the KAT-7 radio telescope have published their first scientific paper, a milestone that is as much about proving the device is up to scratch as it is about doing cutting-edge science.
South Africa's new radio telescope reveals giant outbursts from binary star system
phys.org, 16 May 2013
An international team of astronomers have reported the first scientific results from the Karoo Array Telescope (KAT-7) in South Africa, the pathfinder radio telescope for the $3 billion global Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.
Karoo Array Telescope First Results: Giant Outbursts From Binary Star System Circinus X-1
Science 2.0, 16 May 2013
The Karoo Array Telescope (KAT-7) in South Africa, the pathfinder radio telescope for the $3 billion global Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, has released its first results.
SA telescope captures giant star flares
SouthAfrica.info, 16 May 2013
In a significant milestone for South Africa's Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, the first scientific paper based on observations using the KAT-7 demonstrator radio telescope has been accepted for publication by the prestigious journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomy Society.
KAT-7 observation scores publication
News24, 16 May 2013
The first scientific paper based on observations from the Karoo Array Telescope (KAT-7) has been accepted for publication in a scientific journal.
The KAT is purring: SA's new radio telescope starts delivering quality science
Engineering News, 16 May 2013
South Africa's first radio telescope array, the seven-dish KAT-7 located in the Karoo, which was originally intended to be mainly an engineering prototype for the much larger MeerKAT array, has now established itself as an effective scientific instrument.
SKA SA test telescope reveals binary star system
Mail & Guardian, 16 May 2013
South Africa's test telescope reveals secrets of a binary star system and proves the country is able to deliver first-class scientific instruments.
What if Africa were to become the hub for global science?
BBC News, 26 March 2013
At first sight, it seems unlikely - a continent most associated with war and famine producing globally significant scientific research. However, in many ways, the groundwork is there - knowledge, ingenuity, willingness to learn and adapt, coupled with the rapid expansion of digital technology. All of this is really allowing Africa to play a major part in global scientific collaborations.
Once upon a starry night: The story (so far) of the Square Kilometre Array
FINWEEK, 14 February 2013
The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will eventually become the most sensitive radio telescope ever built, able to
survey the heavens more than 10 000 times faster than current technologies.
SKA-terrein-bodbestuurder Adrian Tiplady
Rapport Uitskieter, 3 February 2013
Hy is een van die groot rolspelers in Suid-Afrika se suksesvolle bod om die grootste deel van die SKA-teleskoop te huisves, maar dit was so byna-byna of hy't eerder voor 'n simfonie-orkes gestaan.
SKA to give competitive advantage to SA
Business Day, 21 January 2013
In technology, radio astronomy is still running off the success of the 1980s, says Rhodes University's new Square Kilometre Array (SKA) research chairman, Oleg Smirnov.
South African students at forefront of massive astronomy project
GroundUp, 4 December 2012
Mpati Ramatsoku and Moses Mogotsi are two South African PhD students who are being funded to work on one of the most exciting science projects of the decade: the Square Kilometre Array.
SA's MeerKAT and the international SKA telescopes moving from concept to reality
Engineering News, 30 November 2012
Since the announcement, in May, of the selection of the sites - one in South Africa and the other in Australia - to host the €1.5-billion international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project (with the major part of the instrument to be in South Africa, in the Karoo region), developments have begun to accelerate.
SKA SA: a local design achievement
Mechanical Technology, October 2012
On 25 May 2012, the International SKA Organisation announced that the Square Kiliometre Array (SKA) project site would be shared between South Africa and Australia, with a majority share coming to South Africa. MechTech talks to Willem Esterhuyse, SKA South Africa's MeerKAT project manager, about the progress so far and the software choices being made to realise this groundbreaking feat of engineering.
Zuma applauds SKA project
IOL, 10 October 2012
The implications and benefits for SA of hosting the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) are mind-boggling, says President Jacob Zuma.
Science pays off for Karoo
Times Live, 10 October 2012
The small town of Carnarvon in Northern Cape is already benefiting from the construction of the world's biggest telescope, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), in the middle of the Karoo.
Total political support for SKA - Zuma
News24, 10 October 2012
President Jacob Zuma endorsed South Africa's project to construct the Square Kilometre Array telescope when he visited the site on Tuesday.
SA should be proud of SKA - Zuma
Eyewitness News, 10 October 2012
President Jacob Zuma on Tuesday said South Africa is now a global player in the field of science with its lion's share in the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project.
SKA strengthening the African agenda - Zuma
Engineering News, 9 October 2012
South African President Jacob Zuma has hailed the selection of the country to host the major part of the €1.5-billion international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope as "an important step in advancing and consolidating the African agenda".
Zuma visits MeerKAT site, extols importance of science
Business Day, 9 October 2012
The world would not be as advanced as it is today without science, President Jacob Zuma said on Tuesday. Mr Zuma on Tuesday visited the MeerKAT site, his first visit to the site since it was decided that South Africa and Australia would share the Square Kilometre Array (SKA).
Start getting excited about SKA: Zuma
Southafrica.info, 9 October 2012
South Africans should start getting excited about hosting what will be the world's largest radio telescope, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), says President Jacob Zuma.
Zuma urges Carnarvon community to support SKA
SAnews, 9 October 2012
President Jacob Zuma on Tuesday told the community of Carnarvon in the Northern Cape to do everything they can to support the Square kilometre Array (SKA) telescope project, saying it would open up many opportunities for them.
Hard work ahead to build SKA - director
News24, 9 October 2012
South Africa's successful bid for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) doesn't mean that the work is done, the project director has said.
SKA site a boost for Karoo: Zuma
The New Age, 9 October 2012
The Square Kilometre Array's (SKA) location in the Northern Cape will be a boost for the Karoo region, President Jacob Zuma said on Tuesday.
Africa: SKA Gives Africa a Chance to Shine
allAfrica, 9 October 2012
The opportunity to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) has given South Africa and Africa as a whole a platform to prove to the world that the continent has what it takes to deliver the cutting-edge science project, says SKA Associate Director Professor Justin Jonas.
Portfolio of news coverage
Download and read a portfolio of media coverage from 25 May 2012 to 3 June 2012 after the site announcement.
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Special focus on SKA
Matieland, July 2012
When electromagnetic expert Prof Howard Reader was first asked to help keep the Karoo "radio whisper quiet" - a key element of South Africa's successful bid to build the ambitious Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope - he assumed he only needed to work on one dish antenna.
Scientist, unionist - and now star of the SKA show
Mail&Guardian, 6 July 2012
The man who led the Square Kilometre Array telescope bid is delighted that this global scientific project will be based in Africa.
SKA bid cost R1.1bn but jobs already in the offing
Western Cape News, 21 June 2012
The bid for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope to be situated in South Africa cost R1.1 billion over nine years, said Minister of Science and Technology Naledi Pandor in Parliament yesterday.
Global media abuzz with news of the SKA
Storify, 15 June 2012
View a collection of some of the media coverage around the SKA after it was announced on 25 May 2012 that Africa and Australia will host the telescope. The articles are roughly arranged according to date and includes South African and world media.
World's biggest 'eye on the sky' set for OK
The New Age, 12 June 2012
A plan to build the world's most powerful optical telescope, able to scour the heavens for planets that could sustain life, has cleared an important hurdle, the European Southern Observatory (ESO) said.
Can Big Science be an Effective Global Development Tool?
Wired, 11 June 2012
The quest to host the Square Kilometer Array - astronomy's next big thing, to be constructed over 12 years at an estimated cost of $2.2 billion - was an intensive effort.
Scores of SKA dishes to be made in South Africa and Australia
Engineering News, 8 June 2012
Phase 1 of the €1.5-billion international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope project will involve the erection of 250 dishes in South Africa and Australia, which will cohost the instrument.
Gauteng industries well positioned to participate in SKA project
Engineering News, 8 June 2012
Gauteng is "ideally" placed to capture some of the benefits of the €1.5-billion international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope project, which South African and Australia will share, member of the executive committee (MEC) for economic development Qedani Mahlangu said on Friday.
SKA is shared, but MeerKAT is ours exclusively, says Fanaroff
Business Day, 6 June 2012
The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) would not affect construction of the precursor MeerKAT telescope, which would remain a wholly South African project, SKA SA's director, Bernie Fanaroff, said this week.
Will the Square Kilometre Array benefit the African continent...
African Science Heroes, 5 June 2012
South Africa is touted as the champion of African development, proverbially like "Moses" leading the dark continent into the light according to the President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma. Their successful World Cup bid was hailed as Africa's world cup is it the same for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA)?
SKA to provide major spin-offs
The New Age, 5 June 2012
The selection of the Northern Cape as a co-site, with Australia, for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope project will have major scientific and economic spin-offs - including courses that will be offered at the university that is being planned for the province.
SKA - a tale of two countries
Cape Times, 5 June 2012
The award of SKA to South Africa and Australia combined the best of two worlds - low costs in South Africa of electricity, labour and materials and Australia's secure socio-economic and political environment.
Starstruck in Carnarvon
Times Live, 3 June 2012
As the base camp of the SKA project, Carnarvon is now the coolest dorp in the galaxy. It's also home to bionic aardvarks, cosmic vetkoek and big dreams.
Square Kilometre Array's Next Big Step
Nerditorial, 2 June 2012
The agreement between the two countries was announced on 25th May 2012, many years since the original plans for the SKA were conceived in the early 1990's.
R120m to kick-off SKA construction
SA IT News, 1 June 2012
The board of the African Renaissance Fund has approved a R120 million funding for the initial work to construct a network of radio telescopes in the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) African partner countries.
Winners all round in telescope bid
Nature, 31 May 2012
Based in both Australia and South Africa, the Square Kilometre Array will face technical and financial challenges.
SKA offers opportunities for astronomy graduates
West Cape News, 31 May 2012
Cape universities are upbeat at the prospect of developing their astronomy and astrophysics departments as a result of South Africa winning the lion's share of the hotly contested SKA radio telescope.
Split SKA still an ego boost for SA
Business Day, 29 May 2012
Overall, it's a fabulous project, and it's fantastic that a big slice of it will be located in this country, particularly since SA is paying only a slice of the total purchase price.
SKA is about ground-breaking science, not egos
Business Day, 28 May 2012
Having both Australia and South Africa on board will enable the SKA to perform the best science possible. That should be the focus, not our egos.
South Africa to host majority of SKA project - Pandor
Engineering News, 25 May 2012
Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor on Friday declared that she was "ecstatic" that South Africa would host three-quarters of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, adding that Africa succeeded in proving to the world that the continent was ready to undertake such a significant project.
'Africa is indeed rising'
Independent Online, 25 May 2012
President Jacob Zuma congratulated Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor and her team on Friday for winning the right to co-host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) telescope with Australia.
SKA host split a 'huge victory for Africa'
Business Day, 25 May 2012
Seventy percent of R23bn radio telescope to be built in Africa, says SKA Organisation.
Australia and South Africa to share SKA super telescope
The Telegraph, 25 May 2012
The world's biggest and most powerful radio telescope will be spread across South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
Biggest-ever telescope to look for ETs
The Independent, 25 May 2012
South Africa and Australia will be partners in the development of the biggest radio telescope ever built, astronomers meeting in The Netherlands announced yesterday.
Africa and Australasia to share Square Kilometre Array telescope
The Guardian, 25 May 2012
Australia and South Africa will share the location of the world's most powerful radio telescope, a scientific consortium has announced.
Africa wins the Square Kilometre Array mandate
Lusaka Times, 25 May 2012
A consortium of African nations, headed by South Africa and including Zambia, has won the mandate to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope project.
Africa and Australasia to share Square Kilometre Array
BBC News, 25 May 2012
South Africa, Australia and New Zealand will host the biggest radio telescope ever built.
Square Kilometre Array to be sited in South Africa and Australia
Wired, 25 May 2012
The board of directors for the world's largest space telescope has decided that it will be sited in both Australia and South Africa.
Nations to split telescope project
Nature, 25 May 2012
The battle for the world's largest radio telescope has ended in a draw. South Africa and Australia will split the Square Kilometre Array, a €1.5-billion (US$1.9-billion) project made up of 3,000 15-metre-wide dishes and an even larger number of simple antennas.
FET bursaries give lift to 16 students
The New Age, 8 May 2012
Sixteen students from Carnavon, Williston and Van Wyksvlei, rural areas in province, have been awarded bursaries through the Further Education and Training bursary scheme to study technical skills in the areas of welding, plumbing, electrical, bricklaying, carpentry and motor mechanics through an accredited FET institute.
Wits on the final frontier
Vuvuzela, 13 April 2012
The University of the Witwatersrand has the potential to become the African hub of astronomy thanks in part to South Africa's bid to host the world's biggest radio telescope.
KAT-7 hope for SKA
The New Age, 19 March 2012
South Africa's ability to deliver cutting-edge technology and do excellent science has again been proven with a major milestone for the KAT-7 (Karoo Array Telescope) radio telescope outside Carnarvon.
South African radio telescope reaches another milestone
Engineering News, 15 March 2012
South Africa's Karoo-based KAT-7 radio telescope array (also known as the MeerKAT Precursor Array) has made a major step in its transition from being an engineering prototype to an operational and scientifically useful instrument. The seven-dish array has successfully observed radio emissions from neutral hydrogen gas in the NGC 3109 galaxy, which is located some 4.3-million light years from Earth.
New 'First' for Africa's Square Kilometre Array Prototype
AllAfrica, 15 March 2012
South Africa's KAT-7 telescope, a seven-dish array which is a precursor to the much larger MeerKAT telescope and a prototype for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), has reached another milestone by producing the first atomic hydrogen spectral line images of a nearby galaxy.
New 'first' for Africa's SKA prototype
Southafrica.info, 15 March 2012
South Africa's KAT-7 telescope, a seven-dish array which is a precursor to the much larger MeerKAT telescope and a prototype for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), has reached another milestone by producing the first atomic hydrogen spectral line images of a nearby galaxy.
KAT-7 observation boost for SKA
News24, 15 March 2012
South Africa has demonstrated the engineering of the Karoo Array Telescope has resulted in a capable instrument as the country makes the final push to host the Square Kilometre Telescope (SKA) in the Northern Cape province.
R9m upgrade puts SA supercomputer back in top 500
Engineering News, 3 February 2012
Supercomputer is also part of South Africa's commitment to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project in order to process the enormous data.
Africa's eye on the sky
Time, 30 January 2012
A new radio telescope could provide radically new insights into the origins of everything. But it's the place the instrument may be built that's creating the most excitement.
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