Exciting developments in the lead up to SKA

The candidate core site for the Australia - New Zealand SKA bid, the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory (MRO), in Western Australia.

WA Universities, organisations and scientific bodies are working to secure the success of the multi-billion dollar Australian and New Zealand Square Kilometre Array bid.

The International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) has taken delivery from Poseidon Scientific Instruments in Fremantle, Western Australia of a production-ready receiver for the Murchison Wide-field Array (MWA) radio telescope.

The MWA is being built on the site of the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory in the State’s Mid West region, a site operated by the CSIRO and the proposed core site for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). The construction of the MWA is to be undertaken by an Australian consortium led by ICRAR, which involves both Curtin University and The University of Western Australia, in close collaboration with US and Indian partners. It is one of the SKA precursor telescopes, proving the technology and science on the path to the SKA.

ICRAR Deputy Director Professor Steven Tingay said this first electronics package was a critical milestone for the MWA project and the innovative enclosure would also prevent electronics from interfering with other equipment on the site, preserving the uniquely quiet environment of the Murchison.

The supercomputer which is initial stage of the computing infrastructure that will support the SKA project has also appeared at number 87 in a list of the world’s top 500 supercomputers.

The Performance Optimised Data Centre (POD) housed at iVEC’s Murdoch University facility is part of the AUD$80 million dollar Pawsey Centre project, supporting the State’s scientific research with awesome computing power.

iVEC spokesperson Mr Mark Favas said the POD system’s ranking is based purely on computer speed, but speed isn’t the only factor that makes this supercomputer efficient.

“[The POD] needs to have very high speed networking to support the SKA, as we need to get data from the Murchison Radio Observatory in Boolardy all the way down via Geraldton and into our machines so we can do something useful with it. It’s fair to say that this will comprise the fastest networking system that has ever existed in WA.”

All parties are working together on a successful SKA bid. A decision on the bid is expected late next year or in early 2012.