Making Very Big Strides, In Astronomy, With The Aid Of First Peoples, In Australia... Soon To Be World's Largest...

The SKA, a project lashing hundreds and hundreds of thousands of small "tree" receivers, and multiple hundreds of dishes together, via software that very precisely controls slewing motions on all, so that they work in unison as one very large scope. . . should be evident in mid-2024, when four dishes in Australia and six antenna stations in South Africa start working seamlessly together as a basic telescope. This proof-of-feasibility in the software will allow the much larger, multi-continent array's full power-up.

It is indeed a privilege to be alive and well, right now -- the moment in human history when contact might -- just might -- become possible, and. . . detectible, by our species. Here is all of it, from an excellent Beeb feed:

. . ."The SKA is going to contribute to so many areas of astronomy," said Dr Shari Breen, the observatory's head of science operations.

"One would be these 'fast radio bursts' that have been detected. These things output the equivalent of an entire year's worth of energy from our Sun in just a fraction of a second. And we have no idea what they are. How is that possible? Hopefully the SKA will have an answer."

The telescope is being built in areas already used for radio astronomy on a smaller scale.

To expand these sites, however, has required various land agreements, with farmers in the Karoo; and with the Wajarri Yamaji, the Aboriginal title holders in the Murchison.

The Wajarri community. . . organised a Monday celebration to inaugurate the SKA. . . .

We will keep smiling into the night skies, knowing those of our kin asleep now, in London, Belfast, Westport, Dakar and Tel Aviv. . . are smiling back. . . as are those closer to home -- to the south.

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