Why in News?

SKAO is an ambitious multinational initiative to build the world’s largest radio telescope spanning one square kilometre. The government of India has formally signed up to join the Square Kilometer Array Observatory (SKAO). The Government has approved India’s participation in the Rs 1250 crore international mega-science project, the Square Kilometer Array (SKA).

About

• SKAO is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to radio astronomy, headquartered in United Kingdom.
• SKAO will consist of one global observatory, operating two telescopes, across three sites.
• Two SKA telescopes will be at radio-quiet sites in South Africa and Australia.
• SKAO is not a single telescope but an array of thousands of antennas, which will serve as one large unit to observe and study astronomical phenomena.
• They are expected to be operational by 2029.
• India joined SKAO in 2012 as an Associate Member and has actively participated in the pre-construction phase of the SKA telescopes.
• In 2022, the National Centre for Radio Astronomy, Pune and SKAO signed cooperation agreement.
• Giant Metre wave Radio Telescope (GMRT) is playing role in SKAO

Objectives of SKAO

• Understand about the birth of Universe.
• Detect Gravitational Waves.
• Understand the evolution of Galaxies, Dark matter and Cosmic Magnetism.

SKAO member countries

Australia, Canada, China, India, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, Netherlands, UK etc

Significance of SKAO for India

• It will allow Indian astronomers direct access to the world’s best radio astronomy facility in the future.
• It will also help India in various key areas ranging from antennas and electronics to data and software, including areas like artificial intelligence.
• The new research could enrich knowledge about galaxy evolution, stars, black holes, etc.

Development of SKAO

• It will be developed using results from various surveys conducted by a powerful telescope called ‘Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder’ (ASKAP).
• ASKAP is developed and operated by Australia’s science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO).
• The ASKAP telescope has been fully operational since February 2019.