Ngarlbugala 2024 SKA-Low update
The Christmas spirit has appeared on site at the laydown yard, making pre-starts every morning a very festive affair. Credit: Ventia.
The rain hasn’t dampened the Christmas spirit at Nyingari Ngurra construction village. Our Blue Tree Project antenna is enjoying its new ‘poolside’ view! Credit: SKAO
2024 has been the biggest year yet for the SKA-Low telescope. Construction really got into its stride, and huge progress was made in all areas.
Rain hampered some of our activities, but the SKAO and its contractors still achieved a lot:
- The three long spiral arm tracks, power and fibre installation along them is nearly completed
- 185 of the 512 stations have mesh installed (35,000 sheets!)
- 14 (of 18) specialised processor huts are installed
- Completion of an early section of the array with more than 1500 antennas, along with nearby stations and digital systems that allow first observations
The SKA-Low team in Australia has nearly doubled in size this year – we now have 84 staff in the team in Australia in Perth and Geraldton, plus more than 30 positions in recruitment.
We are particularly pleased to have Wajarri Yamaji community members working on site for SKA-Low and our partners and contractors, as well as a number of Wajarri and local businesses working on the project.
Finally, we actually turned on the first few stations and made our very first observations of the Universe, showing the telescope is working!
I want to thank all our neighbours in the Murchison for your support of the project during the year and I hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Ant Schinckel, SKA-Low Site Construction Director
