What started as an idea in 2014 by Dr Tim Molteno to develop the world’s smallest radio telescope in his Department of Physics laboratory at the University of Otago, is now being rolled out across eight partner nations of the Square Kilometre Array project in Southern Africa! The open-source, low-cost radio telescope called the ‘Transient Array Radio Telescope’ has been chosen by the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory as the ideal technology to build radio astronomy capacity on the continent.
From the media release:
Scientists and engineers from nine African countries, including South Africa, have converged at Rhodes University in Makhanda to share knowledge in building a low-cost radio telescope called the ‘Transient Array Radio Telescope’ or TART. The workshop takes place at Rhodes’ Continuing Education Centre from 9 to 13 October 2023, where participants will learn to assemble the instrument, get to understand the electronics and gain hands-on experience using the data acquired by TART.
Tim says what’s fantastic about this project is its community-driven approach that’s focused on developing the technological skills of locals and students who can host their own radio telescope at a fraction of the cost of using a conventional radio telescope.
Awesome work Tim! Congratulations to you, and to the community backing the project!