SKA Engineering & Operations Centre
Tracy Cheetham
General Manager: Infrastructure & Site Operations
INFRASTRUCTURE SOUTH AFRICA Consortium Leader (SKA)
tcheetham@ska.ac.za
Overview of presentation
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What is the SKA?
SKA Science
SKA Timeline
SKA in South Africa and Africa
SKA and MeerKAT phases
SKA SA / SKAO Governance structure
SKA Architecture
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
Centre existing status
• Locality plan in TRUP and land options
• SKA SA / SKAO Building requirements &
opportunities
• Way forward
What is the SKA?
• SKA stands for the Square Kilometre Array
- World’s largest radio telescope
- one square kilometre of collecting surface
through an array of antennas distributed
over a large area
• The SKA will be tens of times more sensitive and
hundreds of times faster at mapping the sky that
today’s best radio astronomy facilities
• The SKA will generate data at a rate of more than
10 times today’s global internet traffic
• Global project with SA, AUS, NZ, UK,
Netherlands, Italy, India, Sweden, Canada, China
+ more joining
What will the SKA do?
SKA Science
Challenging Einstein
- Strong field tests of gravity
Galaxy Evolution, Cosmology &
Dark Energy
- How do galaxies evolve?
- What is dark energy?
Cosmic Magnetism
Probing the Cosmic Dawn
Cradle of Life
Continuum Surveys
Radio Transients
SKA Timeline
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2003 January:
SKA SA project office established,
Dr Bernie Fanaroff appointed as Director
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2005 December:
First formal site proposal submitted
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2006 August:
South Africa and Australia short-listed
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2011 September:
Final site proposal submitted
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2011 November:
SKA Organization formed HQ at Jodrell Bank, UK
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2012 February 22:
SSAC recommends Africa as preferred SKA site
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2012 May 25:
SKA Organization split site announcement
(Majority to South Africa)
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2013 November:
SKA preconstruction work commenced
(Work Packages with resources committed in-kind
from partner countries)
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2015 Mar:
SKA 1 re-baselined to fit Euro 650M cost cap
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2015 Apr:
Preliminary Design Completed by all Consortia &
commencement of Stage 2
SKA Site Bid Decision – May 2012
SKA Site in South Africa
AGA Act 2007
Northern Cape
4% population
40% land area
SKA Antennas
Africa (mid-frequency)
Australia (low-frequency array)
The SKA in Africa
Partner Countries:
• Botswana
• Ghana
• Kenya
• Madagascar
• Mauritius
• Mozambique
• Namibia
• Zambia
SKA Phases 1 and 2
South Africa
Dishes
MFAA LFAA
SKA Phase 1 - 25 May 2012 MeerKAT + 190
SKA Phase 1 - Mar 2015
SKA 2
MeerKAT +133
Thousands
yes
Australia
Dishes
MFAA
LFAA
ASKAP + 60
200 000
ASKAP
100 000
expand
MeerKAT precursor
• The MeerKAT radio telescope is funded by the
South African Government (DST)
• 64 dish array – precursor to the SKA
• Infrastructure for MeerKAT completed – 23
antennas installed on site
• 16 dish working array – end June 2016
• 64 dishes – end March 2017
• 64 dish working array – Dec 2017
• MeerKAT will be incorporated into SKA1
MeerKAT Core
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Governance Structures
• SKAO Articles of Association – Limit mandate of SKA
Organization to make preparations for construction of SKA,
but may not proceed with procurement
• South Africa represented on the SKAO Board by the
Director General: Science & Technology and the SKA SA
Project Director
• SKAO Intergovernmental Organization (Treaty organization)
being established for procurement, construction &
operational phase
• SKA South Africa is a business unit of the National
Research Foundation (legal entity in terms of NRF Act)
• Hosting Agreement underway – describes what South
Africa has to provide/make available to the SKAO
Governance Structures
• South African hosting commitment includes:
- Protection of site in the Karoo from Radio Frequency
Interference
- Land in the Karoo
- MeerKAT radio telescope (SA instrument) will be
incorporated into SKA1_MID
- Other facilities subject to Commercial Terms and
Conditions which include:
- Engineering Support Centre in the Karoo;
- Science Data Processing Facility in Cape
Town;
- SKAO Engineering & Operations Centre in
Cape Town
MeerKAT/SKA Schedule
MeerKAT
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 ----
MeerKAT Completed
MeerKAT Early Science
MeerKAT Full Science
SA Infrastructure Design
SKA1-Mid
SA Infrastructure Construction
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Aligned with 5
year survey
time allocation
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16 Antenna Array Science
capable by 30 June 2016
SKA1 Mid Design
SKA1 Mid Procure
SKA1 Construction
SKA1 Mid/MeerKAT Integration
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SKA1 Early Science
SKA1 Full Science
SKA2
SKA2 Design
SKA2 Procurement
SKA2 Construction
SKA2 Science
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SKA Architecture
SKA Engineering &
Operations Centre
• Primary monitoring &
control of SKA radio
telescope from Cape
Town
• Integration, test &
verification from Bits in
to Bits out
• International Scientists
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
Centre status
• SKA SA has 3 offices
- The Park, Pinelands (Cape Town) – lease which houses
SKA SA telescope engineering team, finance, SCM, HR,
scientists (150 people)
- Rosebank (Johannesburg) – lease which houses
infrastructure, HCD, strategy, RFI/AGA teams (40 people)
- Karoo Observatory (Karoo) – land/facilities owned by NRF
which houses telescope & site operations/maintenance teams
(up to 100 people in future)
• SKAO (international) HQ located in Jodrell Bank, Manchester
- SKAO currently upgrading their existing building in
Manchester which is funded by the UK Government
- There is a requirement in both host countries (SA and AUS)
to have an SKAO Engineering & Operations Centre which
includes and Integration Test Facility for the SKA during
construction
NRF-owned land
• SKA SA / SKAO requirements
- NRF has requested the SKA SA to move away from leasing
property in Cape Town to a long-term strategy of owning a
building and land
- NRF owns the land at the SAAO and at the entrance to the
River Club which are both located in the TRUP
- NRF has requested the SKA SA to consider both land options
and determine which is the most feasible (considering
heritage, timelines, flooding & mitigation, ecologically
sensitive areas etc.)
- The new building must cater for both SKA SA and the SKAO
Engineering & Operations Centre
- Building must be “iconic” and reflect high-tech building which
is environmentally friendly
- Co-locating the SKA SA/SKAO with SAAO will promote multiwave astronomy collaboration
Locality Plan within the TRUP
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
land options
Left: SAAO site (NRF owned)
Above: River Club site (NRF
owned)
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
building requirements
Description
Total Area
SKA SA
Reception, Auditorium, Visitors Offices, staff offices,
canteen, stores, server room, library, Reverberation
chamber, telescope control room, Boardroom,
mechanical & electronic workshop, laboratory,
circulation space etc.
7418m2
SKAO
Offices, Integration Test Facility
TOTAL
807m2
8225m2
• Limited budget and requirements will have to be
reduced through design process
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
building opportunities
• Site adjacent/co-located to SAAO which promotes opportunity for
shared facilities (e.g. workshops) to reduce requirements and costs
• SKAO Integration Test Facility requirement can be fast-tracked
through possible re-use of SAAO workshops as interim
• Site adjacent to River Club. River Club development very attractive
to SKA SA and SKAO:
- Hotels (international, local scientists, staff accommodation
and hosting of international conferences)
- Gym
- Restaurants (eliminate canteen and reduce requirements and
costs)
- Accommodation (SKA SA HCD post graduates)
- Live/work/play theme very attractive with excellent working
environment
SKA SA / SKAO Engineering & Operations
way forward
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Tender being prepared to appoint the design team (end May 2016)
Scope will include:
- topographical survey, geotechnical survey
- assessment of geohydrological and other reports available for
both sites
- basic assessment/EIA (including heritage, archaeological,
ecological etc.)
- rezoning application and notification of development
- preliminary and detailed design of bulk civil infrastructure &
building
- Local authority and other approvals (including Water licenses)
Both sites will be assessed by bidders as part of their recommendation on
the preferred site which will form part of the technical evaluation
The Technical Evaluation Committee will evaluate based on criteria and
scoring and the preferred site determined based on specialist input
Timelines: dependent on site – aim is to have a building Q1 2019
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