Some of the satellite dishes that make up the MeerKAT.
South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO)
MeerKAT has made remarkable contributions to South African and international science.
Cousins Bardon, Gregory and Dante in This Town.
BBC
This Town echoes the ways in which music is forged by its social context, while shaping and defining the lives of the people who make it.
Cakase Kruiper, a San elder, explains her connection to the cosmos in the film !Aitsa.
© Dane Dodds and Med_Cine
To the ǀXam and San people, being in the world as a person includes “the sky’s things” - an understanding of and deep connection with the cosmos.
Tony Clerkson / Alamy
Their line up of black and white musicians was a mission statement for a fractured nation, while Hall’s doleful vocals starkly illustrated the politics of disillusionment.
Artist’s impression of some of the SKA-Low antenna stations.
DISR
Hundreds of thousands of antennas across the Western Australian outback will transform our view of the Universe.
The Milky Way above a single MeerKAT antenna in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Inset: EHT image of the Milky Way black hole.
SARAO, EHT
Sagittarius A* lies in the southern sky, passing directly above South Africa.
Some of the dishes that make up the Square Kilometre Array’s radio telescope system. This kind of “blue skies” research can have great real-world value.
MUJAHID SAFODIEN/AFP via Getty Images
The pandemic has underscored that the world requires agility for survival. That makes blue skies science, which encourages curiosity and nimble thinking, perhaps more important than ever.
MeerKAT Radio Telescope.
Radio galaxies may be the oldest galaxy systems, providing clues to the evolution of galaxies.
The two giant radio galaxies found with the MeerKAT telescope. In the background is the sky as seen in optical light. Overlaid in red is the radio light from the enormous radio galaxies, as seen by MeerKAT.
I. Heywood (Oxford/Rhodes/SARAO)
Based on what we currently know about the density of giant radio galaxies in the sky, the probability of finding two of them in this region is extremely small.
The region around the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way, imaged with South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope.
South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO)
A black hole is an object with such a strong gravitational pull that nothing, not even light, can escape from it.
Paul Weinberg
More than just a musical accolade, UNESCO has recognised the social and political importance of Jamaican music.
An artist’s impression of fast radio bursts in the sky above the Australian SKA precursor, ASKAP.
OzGrav, Swinburne University of Technology
Perhaps precisely because they are so elusive, Fast Radio Bursts have received a lot of attention in the years since their discovery.
HIRAX prototype dishes at Hartebeesthoek Astronomy Observatory near Johannesburg.
Kabelo Kesebonye
By sharing a location with the SKA, HIRAX will be able to conduct science in “radio-clear” skies across its wide frequency range.
School children at the site of the KAT-7 radio telescope in Carnarvon, South Africa.
Kevin Govender
Astronomy is accessible to anyone with a view of the sky.
The MeerKAT radio telescope under construction in South Africa’s Karoo region.
Photo courtesy of Dr Fernando Camilo, Chief Scientist at SKA SA
The SKA global project could be a driver that contributes to South Africa’ economic growth.
An image by MeerKAT shows hydrogen gas in M83, a famous spiral galaxy.
SKA SA
A precursor to the Square Kilometre Array- the MeerKAT telescope - is being built right now and remarkable progress has been made in the last 12 months.
The refurbished radio telescope in Kutunse, Ghana paves the way for astronomy in Africa.
SKA
Astronomy on the continent has been given a much needed boost with Ghana’s converted radio telescope between it and South Africa, to conduct scientific observations.
Africa’s scientists are doing remarkable work.
Shutterstock
Africa’s overall contribution to research might be small, but smart people are undertaking smart and important work on and about the continent.
Reuters/Mike Hutchings
Very few African universities offer postgraduate degrees in astronomy. This gap in knowledge and training can be addressed through international partnerships and collaboration.
South Africa’s Karoo region, in the south west of the country, is thought to have significant reserves of shale gas.
Shutterstock
Shale gas holds considerable advantages. But there are still a number of uncertainties around whether South Africa is ready for such a bold step.