Ultra-sensitive radio telescope debuts in South Africa

Another piece of the Square Kilometer Array's puzzle just fell into place. South Africa has officially switched on MeerKAT, billed as the most sensitive radio telescope of its type on the planet. Some parts of the array have been gathering data, but it's now nearly ready to use interferometry from all 64 dishes to map the normally invisible portions of space in exceptionally high detail. It should be completely ready for scientific experiments in about two months, according to Natu re. However, you won't have to wait that long to see fresh results -- you're looking at some above.

Researchers have produced a panorama of the Milky Way galaxy's center (which contains a supermassive black hole) using radio, infrared and X-ray wavelengths that penetrate the gas and dust thwarting conventional telescopes. The image isn't just pretty -- it shows many of the sources of magnetized filament structures near the black hole that previously remained a mystery, potentially offering an explanation for how those filaments came to be.

There are already two projects underway to make use of the full telescope. One will study the level of hydrogen in galaxies , which could help fill out the history of the universe, while another will tackle fast radio bursts and other transients that remain elusive to astronomers. Ultimately, MeerKAT will accommodate eight large-survey projects that will give each team over 1,000 hours of observation time over five years.

Work to fold MeerKAT into the Square Kilometer Array won't start until 2020, when it will gradually integrate with another 130 dishes in South Africa as well as a maximum of 130,000 antennas in Australia. When it's ready, though, the SKA could provide insight that other telescopes just couldn't match. It's also a major milestone for space science in Africa. Although MeerKat is expensive at about 4.4 billion rand ($331 billion US), it's already serving as a draw for scientists who would otherwise have to go to the Americas, Australia or Europe to gather the data they need.

Via: Nature

Source: SKA Africa



via Engadget RSS Feed https://ift.tt/2uzNOvm
RSS Feed

If New feed item from http://www.engadget.com/rss-full.xml, then send me

IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Evernote cuts staff as user growth stalls

Image
Note-taking app Evernote has fallen on hard times of late, culminating in its latest spate of job cuts impacting 15 percent of its workforce (54 employees). CEO Chris O' Neil -- an ex-Googler who took the reins in 2015 -- announced the firings at an all-hands meeting earlier today, reports TechCrunch . In a message on the Evernote blog , O' Neill admitted he'd set "incredibly aggressive goals" for the company in 2018. He continued: "Going forward, we are streamlining certain functions, like sales, so we can continue to speed up and scale others, like product development and engineering." The layoffs follow an exec exodus just weeks ago and the company's recent brand refresh (complete with a refined logo and wordmark). But critics are more concerned about its product, especially the free tier, which they claim lacks the perks to...
Read more

The best air conditioner

Image
By Liam McCabe This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter . When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here . After six summers of researching, testing, and recommending window air conditioners, we've learned that quiet and affordable ACs make most people the happiest—and we think the LG LW8016ER will fit the bill in most rooms. This 8,000 Btu unit cools as efficiently and effectively as any model with an equal Btu rating, and runs at a lower volume and deeper pitch than others at this price. Little extra features like a fresh-air vent, two-axis fan blades, and a removable drain plug help set it apart, too. The LG LW8016ER is a top choice for an office or den, and some people will find it quiet enough for a bedroom, too. If our main pic...
Read more

We won't see a 'universal' vape oil cartridge anytime soon

Image
Pre-loaded cartridges of cannabis concentrate are currently among the most popular means of consumption, and for good reason. They're discreet to use and easy to handle, a far cry from the dark days of 2016 when we had to dribble hash oil or load wax into narrow-mouthed vape pens by hand. But, frustratingly, an ever increasing number of oil cartridge manufacturers employ one-off design standards so that their products won't work with those of their competitors, thereby locking customers into proprietary ecosystems. We've already seen this with nicotine vaporizers -- which has a seen a massive rise in "pod systems" in the last few years, each outfitted with a unique canister and battery built to be incompatible with those of their competition. Is it too late for the burgeoning cannabis industry to set a universal standard for their product designs? ...
Read more