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The MeerKAT dish construction shed is fully complete and now houses a 12 m diameter dish mould, which is in its final stages of completion. The project director and members of the Northern Cape Working Group visited the site on Thursday 28 May 2009 and were witness to the EMMS team polishing the mould. The sanding and polishing ensures the mould is smooth and accurate. Seventeen metres (17 m) above the mould is the dish crane for lifting up the molded dishes and positioning them onto the trailer. The trailer has been custom built for the purpose of transporting the completed dishes from the shed to the site (which is 6 km away). The trailer is 4 m wide and 15 m long and was built by Ramkat Trailers in Cape Town.
MeerKAT dish construction shed
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Dr Bernie Fanaroff (SKA South Africa Project Director) testing out the indoor dish crane
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KAT-7 foundation in the foreground with steamroller compacting gravel paving around foundations seen in the background
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Mobile water source at KAT-7 site
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MeerKAT dish mould
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Sanding and polishing the MeerKAT dish mould
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MeerKAT dish trailer (4 m wide x 15 m long)
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Artist's impression of MeerKAT dish being moved on the custom-built trailer
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The KAT-7 site is easily accessible on the new 6 km road which links the construction shed to the site. The foundations for the seven antennas are also complete.
The tender for the grid power and overhead optical fibre has closed and a decision on the contractor is expected early in July 2009. The work will commence shortly after the contract has been awarded. A design and engineering services tender for MeerKAT has recently been advertised and the KAT-7 reticulation tender will be advertised from 5 June 2009.
Renovations at the SKA South Africa Support Base are now also complete. Offices, workstations, a mechanical laboratory, a boardroom and an indoor braai (barbecue) area are now available.
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