STFC announces 119 million contribution to The Square Kilometre Array
Cavendish Astrophysics has always had a leading role in the world of Astrophysics and Radio Astronomy since the early years when astronomical interferometry was developed at Cambridge by Martin Ryle’s group. In the second decade of the 21st century our group is still having a major and leading role in most of the Radio Astronomy projects around the world. One of these is the Square Kilometre Array telescope. Cavendish Astrophysics is leading the SDP (Science Data Processor) consortium and has a major role in the LFAA (Low Frequency Aperture Array) consortium.
STFC has announced today(11/03/2014) a major boost for the SKA project. A 119 million contribution will support UK’s leading role in the SKA project and will help astronomers around the world to unveil the mysteries of the origin and evolution of the Universe. The UK is leading the effort to design the computing and software with a capacity 1,000 times greater than currently available.
STFC Chief Executive Professor John Womersley said:
For the SKA, todays announcement allows the UK astronomy research community to address some of the fundamental questions on the origin and evolution of the Universe, whilst at the same time the technical innovations needed for the project will transform the capabilities of high-performance computing.
STFC has as well announced today a contribution of 165 million to theEuropean Spallation Source and 25 millionto participate in the M3 Space Mission (PLATO).Speaking ahead of an event at Jodrell Bank Observatory Science Minister David Willetts announced the funding for the two projects. Visionary science projects such as the Square Kilometre Array and the European Spallation Source can help to attract and develop the skilled and technically educated workforce the UK needs whilst giving UK scientists access to cutting edge national and international research facilities.
Extract from the STFC announcement:
UK scientists, engineers and industries will be helping to design and build the worlds largest telescope. The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) will manage the UK role in this exciting project which will be at the forefront of astronomy over the coming decade.
Today STFC confirmed the release of 19M over the next 4 years to support the design of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, made up of a capital investment in Big Data of 11m, and a further 2M a year in the on-going core research programme.
The SKA will be the largest and most sensitive radio telescope in the world, stretching technology to its limits.
In addition, speaking ahead of an event at Jodrell Bank Observatory today, the Science Minister David Willetts announced further funding of 100M for the SKA project as it moves towards construction from 2017. This support will build on the work the UK is already doing in leading the effort to design the computing and software for the project which will have a data processing capacity 1,000 times greater than currently available.
The Minister declaredInvestment in science is a crucial part of this governments long-term economic plan. Its about investing in our future, helping grow new industries and create more jobs and that will mean more financial security for people across the country.
The Square Kilometre Array will be the biggest radio astronomy project the world has ever built, in fact one of the biggest science projects ever built with receivers across Africa and Australia. The dishes and antennae that will make up the telescope will produce 20 times the current global traffic of the internet. To playback a single days worth of SKA data on an iPod would take 2 million years. To handle and analyse such a deluge of data is a huge challenge.
Following the announcement, Professor Phil Diamond, Director General of the SKA Organisation, said: This is a really exciting announcement for the SKA and a solid proof that the project is now really underway. With such a major investment secured there is no stopping it.
The UK expertise is such that we have played key roles in developing the SKA project through to the detailed design phase currently underway, won work packages in these vital data handling areas and most significantly, host the project office at Jodrell Bank for this global, billion Euro project. The science done by SKA will help us understand some of the strangest questions in astronomy and fundamental physics and a whole generation of astronomers will be able to use this inspiring facility to transform the way we understand the world.
