a history of south african astronomy - european parliament

1

7/11/2011 Background informationwww.astroafricaeu.org

Contents

Promoting European African scientific partnerships: the case of radio astronomy 2Minister Naledi Pandor 3Professor Luis Magalhães 5Dr Bernie Fanaroff 6Professor George Miley 7The Joint Africa-EU Strategy 8A History of South African Astronomy 9African Astronomy Today 10The Square Kilometre Array in South Africa 14Astronomy and Human Capital Development 18

2


Promoting European African scientific partnerships: the case of radio astronomy

Southern Africa is an increasingly important hub within the global astronomy network, due to a combination of geographical advantages and government support. South Africa already hosts the southern hemisphere’s largest single optical telescope – the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT). Namibia, meanwhile, is host to the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS), a next generation imaging system for the investigation of cosmic gamma rays. A range of cutting-edge projects now under development are set to add to this research base.

The MeerKAT project is set to be the largest radio astronomy array in the southern hemisphere by 2015. MeerKAT, in turn, is the African precursor instrument to the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), which is set to be the largest radio astronomy project in human history. A consortium of 9 African nations comprises one of two candidate sites to host this project which is set to revolutionise our understanding of the cosmos. Meanwhile, an emerging network of African telescopes is likely to make a significant contribution to the Global Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) network, which combines the observations of many telescopes to produce images of otherwise impossible resolution. This could involve at least 26 satellite ground segment dishes spread out over Africa and the data from this new network will be easily integrated with those from the European VLBI network.

Radio astronomy partnerships with Africa can make a valuable contribution to economic development and significantly contribute to attaining the Millennium Development Goals. By training a new generation of highly qualified scientists to work on African projects, they can boost the region's human capital and keep many of Africa’s brightest young minds in Africa. This is one reason for the African Union’s endorsement of the SKA project. Moreover, the development of radio astronomy facilities can transform Southern Africa into a global research centre for a range of scientific disciplines – from physics to engineering to ICT. This can create opportunities for local companies to cooperate with European industry and allow companies on both continents to develop new products and expand on new markets.

3


Minister Naledi Pandor

Current PositionsMinister of Science and Technology of the Republic of South Africa.Member of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress.Member of Parliament.

Education

1972: Matric, Gaborone Secondary School, Botswana.

1973-1977: BA and CCE, University of Botswana and Swaziland.

1977-1978: Diploma in Education, University of London.

1978-1979: MA in Education, University of London.

1992: Diploma in Higher Education, Administration and Leadership, Bryn Mawr Summer Programme (HERS).

1997: Diploma in Leadership in Development, Kennedy School of Government, University of Harvard.

1997: MA in General Linguistics, University of Stellenbosch.

4


Career

1980: School teacher, Ernest Bevin School, London

1981-1984: School teacher in Gaberone, Botswana.

1984-1986: Senior Lecturer in Teacher Education, Taung College of Education.

1986-1989: Senior Lecturer in English, University of Bophuthatswana.

1988-1990: Chair of the Union of Democratic Staff Associations, University of Bophuthatswana, Mafikeng.

1989-1994: Senior Lecturer in the Academic Support Programme, University of Cape Town.

1991-1993: Chair, National Executive Committee (Western Cape) of the National Education Coordinating Committee.

1991-1995: Member, ANC Education Committee (Western Cape).

1992-1994: Chair, ANC Athlone Central branch.

1992-1994: Executive Chair, Desmond Tutu Education Trust.

1992-1998: Chair, Western Cape School Building Trust.

1992-1995: Deputy Chair, Tertiary Education Fund of South Africa.

1993-2001: Deputy Chair, Joint Education Trust Board of Trustees.

1994- : ANC MP, served on the Portfolio committee on Education; convener of a sub-committee on higher education.

1994-1995: ANC Whip, National Assembly.

1995-1997: Chair, Tertiary Education Fund of South Africa.

1995-1998: ANC Deputy Chief Whip, National Assembly.

1998-1999: Deputy Chairperson, National Council of Provinces.

1999-2004: Chairperson, National Council of Provinces.

2002- : Member, ANC National Executive Committee, and member of sub-committees on Education, Communications, Archives, Political Education.

2002-2004: Chancellor of Cape Technikon.

2002-2004: Member, Council of the University of Fort Hare.

2004-2009: Minister of Education.

5


Professor Luis Magalhães

Current PositionPresident of the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC), Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Portugal; Co-Chair of the Joint Expert Group, Africa-EU Science, Information Society and Space Partnership

CareerLuis Magalhães studied Applied Mathematics at Brown University and was awarded a PhD in 1982. He has previously served as a member of a variety of national research bodies in Portugal, including the Natural and Exact Sciences Coordination Commission of the Scientific and Technological Research National Board (1992-94) and as coordinator of the National Research Units Evaluation, Ministry of Science and Technology (1996-1997). He was a Portuguese delegate to the OECD Science and Technology Policy Committee and to the OECD Global Science Forum (1998-2002)and subsequently became a member of the European Science Foundation Governing Council (2000-2002). Since 1993, he has been Full Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) of the Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (UTL) and acceded to his current position as President of the Knowledge Society Agency (UMIC) in July 2005. In 2011 he became European Co-Chair of the Joint Expert Group for the 8th Africa-EU Partnership Science, Information Society and Space.

6


Dr Bernie Fanaroff

Current PositionProject Director, SKA South Africa

CareerBernie Fanaroff studied physics at the University of the Witwatersrand and did a PhD at Cambridge University in radio astronomy. He taught at the University of the Witwatersrand and then worked as a union organiser for nineteen years. He has been the Deputy Director General in the Office of President NR Mandela and the Head of the Office for the Reconstruction and Development Programme, the Deputy Director General of the Department of Safety and Security, the chair of the Integrated Justice System Board and the Steering Committee for Border Control, and is now the Project Director of South Africa's Square Kilometre Array bid and the construction of the Karoo Array Telescope.

7


Professor George Miley

Current PositionProfessor of Astronomy at Leiden UniversityVice President, International Astronomical Union (Development and Education)Royal Netherlands Academy Professor, Leiden University

CareerProf. George Miley studied at University College Dublin and obtained his PhD in 1968 from the University of Manchester, home of the Jodrell Bank radio telescope. He joined the staff of LeidenUniversity in 1970 and has spent several years in the US, including 4 years on the staff of theSpace Telescope Science Institute.

Prof. Miley is the initiator of the Universe Awareness" programme which aims to inspire economically disadvantaged children with astronomy and, as IAU Vice President, he has recently led the development of the IAU Strategic Plan 2010 - 2020, “Astronomy for the Developing World". He is Chairman of the Steering Committee of the IAU Office of Astronomy for Development, a small office that has been set up to coordinate the implementation of the plan as a joint venture between the IAU and the South African National Research Foundation.

8


The Joint Africa-EU Strategy

The Joint Africa-EU Strategy was adopted at the EU-Africa Lisbon Summit in 2007. This “co-owned joint strategy” outlines a long-term shared vision of future African-European relations in a globalised world. Its establishment reflects a joint recognition of several strategic realities – that Africa and Europe have joint political concerns on a range of issues; that Europe can and must support Africa in its efforts to overcome continental challenges; and that Africa is a significant actor in issues of European and Global concern.

The Strategy contained an Action Plan that was embedded in 8 partnerships. These partnerships were renewed in the Action Plan for 2011-2013. Significantly, a specific partnership on Science, Information Society and Space was included. This inclusion recognizes firstly the crucial role of Science and Technology in socio-economic transformation. Furthermore, it constitutes recognition that Africa is a potentially invaluable partner to Europe in terms of scientific progress.

2011-2013 Partnership on Science, Information Society and Space

Priority One: Science and Technology capacity building for the implementation of Africa’s Science and Technology Consolidated Plan of Action (CPA).

Objective: To strengthen African Capacities in the area of science and technology (S&T), in order to enhance the use of S&T and to improve S&T cooperation.

Priority Two: Support the development of an inclusive information society in Africa.

Objective: Complement and develop new strategies to support investments made on ICT infrastructures deployment, as planned in the EU-Africa Partnership on Infrastructures. This will be done by exploiting synergies between the EU 2020 Digital Agenda and the African Union ICT development frameworks as well as with support to capacity-building initiatives for mass diffusion of ICTs and related services considered as key enablers for poverty reduction, economic growth, social development and regional integration.

Priority Three Enhance Cooperation on Space Applications and technology.

Objective: Enhanced cooperation in the use of space applications and technology to support Africa’s development.

9


A History of South African AstronomySouth Africa’s position as a global leader in astronomy stems from a rich heritage of astronomical observation. The first South African astronomers were primarily interested in solving navigational problems in order to augment the safety of maritime traffic passing the challenging coastline. These astronomers were involved in carrying out the first trigonometric surveys, as well as establishing an extensive network of lighthouses around Southern Africa.

The Royal Observatory at the Cape of Good Hope, the first permanent astronomical observatory in the Southern Hemisphere (established in 1820), dominated early South African astronomy. This was in part because Cape Town was easily accessible to Northern Hemisphere astronomers. In later years, the excellent observing conditions on the highveld were exploited and other major observatories were established.

From 1834 to 1838, Sir John Herschel worked in his private observatory in Wynberg (present-day Claremont), Cape Town, and completed the work of his father, Sir William Herschel. Sir William Herschel searched and mapped the clusters, nebulae and double stars in the Northern Hemisphere; and Sir John Herschel completed the search in the Southern Hemisphere.

In 1903, the Transvaal Meteorological Department, from which the Republic Observatory later developed, was created. The Secretary and Librarian of the Royal Observatory, RTA Innes, wasappointed as its first director.

By the 1920s, South Africa’s reputation as the choice astronomy observing location was recognised internationally. With strong government support, the observatories of Yale, Harvard, Michigan and Leiden established southern stations in the country. This allowed many astronomers with distinctive programmes to work at a great level of efficiency and produce data of very high quality. Indeed, some of the large-scale fundamental photometric and spectroscopic programmes completed at Cape and Radcliffe Observatories had no counterparts in the Northern Hemisphere. The regions’ clear skies were also utilised by other Southern African countries, especially in Namibia, which hosted a number of German-sponsored observatories.In the late 1950s, the Space Age saw the advent of tracking stations for artificial satellites (Olifantsfontein & STADAN) and more recently there has been a great increase in interest in radio astronomy in South Africa (HartRAO & Rhodes University Astronomical Laboratory).

In 1961, South Africa became a Republic. As a result of the apartheid policy, sanctions were imposed. This greatly impacted scientific co-operation between South Africa and the international community. Foreign institutions established in South Africa gradually withdrew their support and most of the established observatories were handed over to South African institutions, which were financially hard-pressed to keep them running.

In the late 1960s, unprecedented growth in cities around the world increased the amount of light pollution exponentially. To overcome this problem, as well as to streamline astronomy in South Africa, the government decided to amalgamate some observatories and move their instruments to Sutherland, a dark-sky site in the Karoo. As a result of this decision, in 1974 the Republic, Radcliffe and Royal Observatoryies were combined into what is now known as the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO).

10


In 1994 South Africa held its landmark democratic elections and sanctions were withdrawn. Soon after, the international astronomical community started to re-invest in South Africa’s clear dark skies, which lead to the re-opening of Boyden Observatory in Bloemfontein after a period of dormancy. Until recently, the most exciting post-sanction infusion into Southern African astronomy was the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) project in Sutherland. Now, South Africa has caught the world’s attention again, through the development of the MeerKAT array and its positionin the SKA selection process. This moment represents a new dawn for astronomy in South Africa.

African Astronomy Today

Existing Astronomy Projects in Africa

High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.)

H.E.S.S. (High Energy Stereoscopic System) is a system of Imaging Atmospheric Telescopes that investigates cosmic gamma rays in the 100 GeV to 100 TeV energy range. The instrument allows scientists to explore gamma-ray sources with intensities at a level of a few thousandth parts of the flux of the Crab nebula (the brightest steady source of gamma rays in the sky). H.E.S.S. is located in Namibia, near the Gamsberg Mountain, about 100 km south-west of Windhoek, the Namibian capital, an area well known for its excellent optical quality. The first of the four telescopes of Phase I of the H.E.S.S. project went into operation in Summer 2002; all four were operational in December 2003, and were officially inaugurated on September 28, 2004. The H.E.S.S. research group subsequently

received the European Union's prestigious Descartes Prize for Science in Brussels on 7 March 2007. The European Union established the Descartes Prize in 2000 to highlight and recognise scientific and technological achievements based on collaboration between many countries.

Southern African Large Telescope (S.A.L.T.)

The Southern African Large Telescope is the largest single optical telescope in the Southern Hemisphere, with a hexagonal mirror array 11 metres across. The construction of SALT has been completed, funded by a consortium of international partners from South Africa, the United States, Germany, Poland, India, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. It is now in its commissioning phase. Astronomers from Southern Africa and SALT partners in the UK, the USA, New

Zealand, Poland, Germany and India use SALT to tackle fundamental questions about how the Universe works. The science programmes are many and varied. For example, SALT is being used to conduct spectroscopic follow up observations of Supernovae to measure their distance. Projects are also proposed to conduct spectroscopic follow up observations of faint x-ray sources discovered with the XMM-Newton and Chandra satellites to determine the nature of these objects. Closer to home, SALT is being used to study some of the smallest asteroids ever discovered.

11


The MeerKAT ArrayThe MeerKAT array, currently taking shape in South Africa’s Karoo region, is a world-class radio telescope designed for cutting-edge science. It will be the largest and most sensitive radio telescope array in the Southern Hemisphere until the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is completed around 2024. Via MeerKAT, South Africa is playing a key role in design and technology developments for the SKA.

Close to 100 young scientists and engineers are working on the MeerKAT project. Based at the engineering office in Cape Town, and at universities and technology companies across South Africa and Africa, researchers interact closely with SKA teams around the world. In collaboration with South African industry and universities, and collaborating with global institutions, the South African team has developed technologies and systems for the MeerKAT telescope, including innovative composite telescope dishes and cutting-edge signal processing hardware and algorithms.

Technical specifications for MeerKATMeerKAT will consist of 64 dishes of 13.5 m diameter each with an offset Gregorian configuration. An offset dish configuration has been chosen because its unblocked aperture provides uncompromised optical performance and sensitivity, excellent imaging quality, and good rejection of unwanted radio frequency interference from satellites and terrestrial transmitters. It also facilitates the installation of multiple receiver systems in the primary and secondary focal areas, and is the reference design for the mid-band SKA concept.

MeerKAT supports a wide range of observing modes, including deep continuum, polarisation and spectral line imaging, pulsar timing and transient searches. A range of standard data products are provided, including an imaging pipeline. A number of data spigots are also available to support customised processing instruments. Significant design and qualification efforts are planned to ensure high reliability to ensure low operational cost and high availability.

MeerKAT construction phases

MeerKAT will be delivered in three phases. KAT-7 will be used as an engineering and science prototype. The commissioning of MeerKAT will take place in 2014 and 2015, with the array coming online for science operations in 2016. This phase will include all antennas, but only the first receiver will be fitted, and a processing bandwidth of 750 MHz will be available. For the second phase, the remaining two receivers will be fitted and the processing bandwidth will be increased to at least 2 GHz, with a goal of 4 GHz.

MeerKAT scienceFive years of observing time on MeerKAT have been allocated to leading radio astronomers who have applied for time to do research with this unique and world-leading instrument. The science objectives of the MeerKAT surveys are in line with the prime science drivers for the first phase of the SKA telescope itself, confirming MeerKAT’s designation as an SKA precursor instrument.

12


MeerKAT science projects Research leadersTesting Einstein’s theory of gravity and gravitational radiation - Investigating the physics of enigmatic neutron stars through observations of pulsars.

Professor Matthew Bailes, Swinburne Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Australia

LADUMA (Looking at the Distant Universe with the MeerKAT Array) - An ultra-deep survey of neutral hydrogen gas in the early universe.

Dr. Sarah Blyth, University of Cape Town in South Africa; Dr. Benne Holwerda, European Space Agency, The Netherlands; Dr. Andrew Baker, Rutgers University, USA

MESMER (MeerKAT Search for Molecules in the Epoch of Re-ionisation) - Searching for CO at high red-shift (z>7) to investigate the role of molecular hydrogen in the early universe.

Dr. Ian Heywood, Oxford University, UK

MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey for atomic hydrogen and OH lines in absorption against distant continuum sources (OH line ratios may give clues about changes in the fundamental constants in the early universe).

Dr. Neeraj Gupta, ASTRON, The Netherlands; Dr Raghunathan Srianand, Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, India

MHONGOOSE (MeerKAT HI Observations of Nearby Galactic Objects: Observing Southern Emitters) - Investigations of different types of galaxies; dark matter and the cosmic web.

Professor Erwin de Blok, University of Cape Town, South Africa

TRAPUM (Transients and Pulsars with MeerKAT) - Searching for, and investigating new and exotic pulsars.

Dr. Benjamin Stappers, Joddrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, UK; Professor Michael Kramer, Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, Germany

A MeerKAT HI Survey of the FornaxCluster (Galaxy formation and evolution in the cluster environment).

Dr Paolo Serra, ASTRON, The Netherlands

MeerGAL (MeerKAT High Frequency Galactic Plane Survey) - Galactic structure and dynamics, distribution of ionised gas, recombination lines, interstellar molecular gas and masers.

Dr Mark Thompson, University of Hertfordshire, UK; Dr Sharmilla Goedhart, South African SKA Project

MIGHTEE (MeerKAT International GigaHertz Tiered Extragalactic Exploration Survey) - Deep continuum observations of the earliest radio galaxies

Dr Kurt van der Heyden, University of Cape Town; Matt Jarvis, University of the Western Cape, South Africa and the University of Hertfordshire, UK

13


ThunderKAT (The Hunt for Dynamic and Explosive Radio Transients with MeerKAT) - eg gamma ray bursts, novae and supernovae, plus new types of transient radio sources.

Professor Patrick Woudt, University of Cape Town, South Africa; Professor Rob Fender, University of Southampton, UK

MeerKAT will also participate in global VLBI operations with all major radio astronomy observatories around the world and will add considerably to the sensitivity of the global VLBI network, and enhance the southern VLBI arrays. Further potential science objectives for MeerKATare to participate in the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence, and collaborate with NASA on downloading information from space probes.

Africa Very Long Baseline Telescope Array

Very Long Baseline Interferometry allows the combination of observations that are made simultaneously by many telescopes. In this way, it emulates a telescope with a size equal to the maximum separation between the telescopes.

SKA South Africa and its partners in Africa are investigating the construction of the Africa Very Long Baseline Telescope Array, an array of radio telescopes throughout Africa, as an extension of the existing global Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network (VLBI). The proposal is to modify existing but redundant dishes previously utilised for satellite telecommunication.

SKA South Africa and its partners are looking at converting large (about 30 m in diameter) satellite telecommunications dishes found in many African countries, into radio telescopes. The dishes have been rendered obsolete by the construction of terrestrial and marine optical fibre networks throughout Africa. Telecomm operators in two countries have already indicated that they are open to handing over the dishes.

The idea is to link all these telescopes together, and to radio telescopes in South Africa, forming what has been described as the Africa VLBI Telescope Array. This, in turn, would be connected to radio telescopes and arrays in Europe and elsewhere in the world, including North and South America, Asia and Australia. The greater the array of telescopes – i.e. the longer the “baseline” – the greater the amount of astronomical detail that can be discerned. It is for this reason that the baseline to Southern Africa is important, and why European astronomers want to use the African facility.

The Africa VLBI Telescope Array would be used for Long Baseline and Very Long Baseline Interferometry observations. It would significantly improve the science which can be done with the global VLBI network. The project would also stimulate astronomy in the participating countries and help to develop skills in electronics and information and communications technology.

14


The Square Kilometre Array in South Africa

The Telescope Expected to be operational by 2024, the SKA (Square Kilometer Array) will be a revolutionary radio telescope that will allow scientists to address many of the fundamental, unanswered questions about the Universe we live in.

The SKA will be located in the Southern Hemisphere, and will be by far the largest and most sensitive radio telescope ever built. It will comprise more than 3,000 receiving dishes, each about 15 m wide, arranged in five spiral arms extending from a central core to at least 3,000 km. With this configuration, it will simulate the receiving power of a square kilometer antenna.

The SKA will be 50 times more sensitive than any existing radio telescope, providing continuous frequency coverage from 70 MHz to 10 GHz in the first phases of its construction, and reaching 30 Ghz in the final phase. Astronomers and engineers from more than 70 institutes in 20 countries are working on the SKA project. Once in operation, it will be a truly global science facility, and its data will be distributed and processed in centers around the world.

The development of the SKA will go the following stages:

2008-2012: System design. 2012: Site selection. 2013-2015: Detailed design and production engineering. 2016-19: Phase 1 construction.2018-23: Phase 2 construction.2020: Full Science operations with Phase 1.2024: Full Science operations with Phase 2.

The Science With its unprecedented sensitivity and frequency coverage, the SKA will complement and enrich the astronomical data provided by optical telescopes and artificial satellites, and will allow astronomers to study areas of space and cosmic phenomena that are now inaccessible.

The SKA's main goal will be to map the distribution of hydrogen in the Universe, by observing the characteristic 21-cm wavelength electromagnetic radiation emitted by hydrogen atoms when they change energy state. This signal, the so-called hydrogen line, falls in the radio spectrum, and can penetrate the interstellar dust which instead shields visible light. The SKA will enable astronomers to locate over a billion new galaxies, measuring their mass and relative speed.

By mapping hydrogen and measuring even the faintest perturbation of its emission from distant galaxies, the SKA it will help explain the expansion of the Universe after the Big Bang, and the nature of the mysterious dark energy that is driving it.

The SKA will look back to the Dark Ages of the Universe, a time between 150 and 800 million years after the Big Bang, when the first stars and galaxies were formed and when the hydrogen line was

15


effectively the only emitted radiation. In this way, it will help astronomers discover how the earliest black holes and stars were formed.

Radio astronomy is the best, if not the only, mechanism with which to study cosmic magnetism. The new telescope will investigate how giant magnetic fields in space are generated, by creating three-dimensional maps of cosmic magnets to understand how they stabilise galaxies, influence the formation of stars and planets, and regulate stellar activity.

The SKA will also put Einstein's theory of general relativity to the ultimate test, by investigating the nature of gravity. It will look for pulsars orbiting black holes (pulsars are rotating stars which constitute the most precise natural clocks in the Universe). It will measure how such systems perturbate space and time, and verify whether the observed data match Einstein's predictions.

Finally, radio astronomy is the primary means of searching for evidence of extraterrestrial life. The SKA will be able to detect even extremely weak extraterrestrial signals and will scan the Universe searching for the complex molecules that are the building blocks of life.

South Africa and the SKASouth Africa is one of two candidate sites for the SKA, with a number of advantages that make it an ideal host location. In addition to offering wide coverage of the astronomically “rich” southern sky, South Africa is and will remain a radio quiet zone, with low levels of radio frequency interference. It has very little light pollution in comparison to other industrialised countries, at the same time offering basic infrastructure of roads, electricity and communication. It is a non-seismic zone, politically stable, not too densely inhabited. Land, labour and services are available and very affordable, and excellent academic infrastructures are in place to support science and technology

South Africa is already building one of the largest and most powerful radio telescopes in the world, MeerKAT, a groundbreaking project in its own right which is meant to be a precursor to the SKA. MeerKAT is being constructed adjacent to the site proposed for the SKA near the small town of Carnarvon in the Northern Cape Province. It will develop technologies appropriate to the SKA, including the use of composite, one-piece reflectors, wideband receivers, low-cost, high-reliability cryogenic systems, and reconfigurable digital processing systems. Its 64 dishes will be installed by the end of 2016. MeerKAT will subsequently form the core of the larger SKA array.

Benefits beyond science

ICTThe benefits of the SKA to industry and society will equal the astronomical discoveries. The SKA will be first and foremost a massive research and development effort for the ICT industry. Signals received by the SKA will have to be transferred to a central high performance supercomputer by optical fibers. The rate at which the vast quantities of data will be transferred to the supercomputer will far exceed the data rates of current internet traffic. Consequently, the SKA will become a development laboratory for communication infrastructures.

The SKA will challenge the ICT industry to innovate and achieve efficiency and cost savings in high performance networks. New software and hardware to drive the SKA will be developed, potentially

16


setting global standards for ICT engineering and construction, for signal processing, storage and computation.

EnergyThe SKA will also need remote power generation with low running costs, unaffected by fluctuations in global fuel prices. Its energy strategy will accelerate technology development in the areas of scalable energy generation and storage, distribution, efficiency and demand reduction, and provide a test bed for innovative green energy technologies that can later be transferred to the market.

Socio-economic developmentAt the same time, the development of MeerKAT and the SKA will become a powerful driver of socioeconomic growth in South Africa and its neighbouring countries. It will boost the region's human capital by training a new generation of highly qualified scientists, technician and professionals, and create a whole new range of opportunities and international collaboration for the region's industry. The SKA has the potential to effectively change the face of science in the whole Southern African region.

SKA Africa participating StatesThe African bid for the Square Kilometre Array consists of nine partner countries, with South Africa taking the lead in the coordination and development of the project and Kenya, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Mauritius, Madagascar, Ghana and Zambia all potentially playing host to SKA outstations on their territory. The African SKA initiative has an additional category of cooperation called the SKA African Associate Countries. This includes countries participating in the training of students to become global experts in astronomy, engineering and information technology. Membership to become an SKA African Associate Country is open to all African countries.

The pan-African nature of the project has been acknowledged by the African Union (AU) as a vehicle for capacity building across the continent. At the 15th ordinary session of the assembly of Heads of State and Government in July 2010, the AU recognised the importance of the science, technology and innovation emanating from the SKA project.

KenyaSince independence, the Kenyan authorities have recognized the importance of science and technology as an essential tool of socio-economic development and have consistently worked on strategies for positioning the sector as the driver of national development. Since 2009 universities in Kenya have started undergraduate programmes in astronomy and astrophysics to encourage the development of these disciplines in the country. Moreover, a number of Kenyans have been supported by the SKA Africa’s human capacity development programmes, through bursaries, scholarships and other educational initiatives.

NamibiaNamibia boasts a tradition of excellence in astronomy and at present is host to the world’s leading gamma ray telescope. Situated near the Gamsberg nature reserve south of the capital Windhoek, the High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) is an array of four 12m telescopes probing cosmic gamma rays in the 100 GeV and TeV energy range. In 2005, it was announced that H.E.S.S. had detected eight new high-energy gamma ray sources, doubling the known number of such sources. Two of these sources could not be identified with known objects such as supernova remnants or pulsars,

17


raising the possibility of new physics and the existence of some new "dark" objects. In addition, the Namibian polytechnic now offers degrees in Geo-Information Technology and Geomatics and is pursuing a number of research projects through the SKA Human Capital Development Programme.

MauritiusThe University of Mauritius has been teaching undergraduate courses in astronomy for a number of years and plans on extending its existing post-graduate programme with the help of SKA Africa support. Significant expertise has been gained through the Mauritius Radio Telescope; a synthesis radio telescope used to make images of the sky at a frequency of 151.5 MHz. This background in astronomy will be a particular strength for Mauritius in hosting an SKA receiver station.

GhanaGhana maintains a strong position within Africa’s astronomy and astrophysics community, particularly through the presence of the African Physical Society headquartered in Accra. The African Physical Society, which is made up of physicists and mathematicians, agreed in January 2010 to fully support Africa’s bid to provide a site for the SKA. This support is an endorsement by the research community of Africa that advances a collective African vision to further grow frontier research and technology development.

MadagascarThe University of Antananarivo has recently opened courses on astronomy and astrophysics and will make use of existing facilities at the observatory of Ankadiefajoro to develop these modules. The impact of the SKA Africa capacity building programme on Madagascar will be appreciable, as the country promotes a revival of astronomy and astrophysics within its education system. Such efforts will enhance the opportunities for young people to engage with science and ultimately stimulate greater socio-economic development.

MozambiqueAs a direct result of the African bid for the SKA, there are new courses in astronomy at the Eduardo Mondlane University in Maputo. By summer 2010, 75 students had registered for courses in astronomy and astrophysics, accompanied by a growing demand for places on these courses. Moreover, in 2009 Mozambique established its own astronomical society – AstroMoz – to coordinate and promote astronomical activities within the country.

ZambiaIn 2003 Zambia joined the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC) in order to represent the interests of the space-science community to the UN, national governments and specialist organisations regionally and internationally. SGAC Zambia seeks to promote space science both in schools and in the public domain in order to raise awareness and develop the next generation of astronomers. In the area of education, SGAC Zambia advocates the introduction of space-related subjects at schools and promotes the training of educators to enable them to teach topics like space science and astronomy effectively.

BotswanaBotswana will potentially host up to four SKA antenna stations under current proposals for the African bid. Since 2009, a number of undergraduate programmes in astronomy and astrophysics have been opened at the University of Botswana with demand growing rapidly for involvement in these courses.

18


Astronomy and Human Capital DevelopmentDue to its combined inspirational, scientific and technological aspects, astronomy can play a unique role in education and human capital development. Furthermore, unlike most sciences, astronomers can participate in frontier astronomical research, no matter where they are based. This has been noted by The International Astronomical Union in its Strategic Plan 2010-2020 "Astronomy for the Developing World".

Given the ability of the night sky to capture young imaginations, astronomy is an ideal introductionfor children to science and the scientific method. As a science that naturally integrates a wide array of academic disciplines – from physics to biology to mathematics – it provides a link for secondary school students to a range of scientific studies at university. Study of astronomy at third-level provides a range of transferable attributes: from problem-solving skills obtained through the study of cosmological extremes to management experience obtained through participation in international collaborative teams.

The transformational potential of Astronomy projects for Human Capital Development is exemplified by the South African SKA Human Capital Development Programme

South African SKA Human Capital Development Programme (HCDP)

Launched in 2005, the South African SKA HCDP has been devised to nurture a new generation of graduates with the technical and scientific capacity to develop the MeerKAT/SKA projects into the future.

AwardsSince its inception, the programme has awarded 293 bursaries, grants and fellowships and established five research chairs dedicated to the science and instrumentation of the MeerKAT/SKA programme and multi-wavelength astronomy. Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University, the University of Cape Town (UCT), the University of the Western Cape (UWC) and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) were selected to host the Research Chairs as part of the South African Research Chairs Initiative, designed to support world class research and teaching at universities across the country. Bursaries cover study for PhD, MSc, undergraduate, technician and artisan qualification.

The programme is also delivering tangible benefits across the region, with astronomy courses now being taught in Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar and Mauritius. The investments made by the South African government into the HCDP are demonstrative of its commitment to the SKA project, and the desire to sustain research initiatives in the coming decades.

New University ProgrammesDuring the SKA Africa Working Group meeting 1-2 September 2010, it was reported that since 2009 the universities in Mozambique, Botswana and Kenya have started undergraduate programmes and courses in astronomy and astrophysics. There has been great demand from students to participate in these courses. Further examples of positive university impacts include:

The Namibian Polytechnic, which now offers degrees in Geo-information Technology and

19


Geomatics (surveying) and is developing research projects with the SKA South Africa Project Office. The University of Antanarivo in Madagascar, which has been offering undergraduate courses and is now offering MSc study. The University of Mauritius, which has been teaching undergraduate courses in astronomy for a number of years and plans on extending its existing post-graduate programme in the future. A total of 114 undergraduate students have participated in these courses in 2010 and this number is expected to increase to approximately 134 in 2011.

New ProgrammesTo enhance the human capacity development initiatives in Africa, the South African SKA Project has announced the initiation of the African Technician Training Programme and the African SKA Postgraduate Bursary Programme. The South African SKA Project will support students from Africa to study and train as electronic and mechanical engineering technicians to ensure sufficient capacity for the maintenance of the telescope systems at the remote SKA stations in Africa. The programmeis scheduled to start in 2011.

Achievements to date

Carnarvon High School is now a Dinaledi school and as a result additional teaching posts have 1.been created. This has allowed for the recruitment of three new Mathematics and Science teachers.The SKA project has run a number of community outreach events which included popular 2.astronomy talks and viewing the night sky with an optical telescope, conducted teacher workshops on astronomy and has supported and participated in the winter mathematics and science schools organised by the schools. The SKA project has established a number of partnerships that have contributed significantly to 3.the schools. The Universal Services and Access Agency of South Africa donated R750, 000 for the 4.construction of a Cyberlab at Carnarvon High School. The Cyberlab is complete and is equipped with 45 computers, a server and printers.Microsoft South Africa provided MS Office software and antivirus packages for the computers 5.in the Cyberlab.Learnthings donated curriculum based education software for the Cyberlab.6.Optic 1 for provided Carnarvon High School with the fibre link from the school to Telkom and 7.

also R50, 000 for equipment required for the science laboratories at Williston Primary School, and Carnarvon Primary School and Carnarvon High School.

Programme Statistics

Since 2005 the South African SKA Project has awarded the following grants:

Research chairs: 5

Associate professorships: 1

Joint professorships: 1

20


Lecturers: 4

Research assistants: 1

Postdoctoral fellowships: 23

PhD bursaries: 43

MSc bursaries: 74

Honours bursaries: 39

Undergraduate bursaries: 61

Internships: 6

BTech bursaries: 3

National Diploma bursaries: 6

In-service training bursaries: 13

FET bursaries: 13

Of the 293 awards, 191 have been in the field of physics and astronomy and 102 in engineering.

Of the positions filled to date, 190 awards have been to men and 96 to women.

226 South Africans have received grants from the project. The demographic breakdown of these awards are:

Black, Indian / Coloured women: 32oBlack / Indian / Coloured men: 94oWhite Women: 49oWhite men: 51o

48 grants have gone to students and postdoctoral fellows from other countries in Africa and 12 to individuals from the rest of the world.

a history of south african astronomy - european parliament

Documents