The ATNF SKA/LOFAR project
For the past few years, the ATNF, together with a number of other Australian groups, has been actively involved in the international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project. The SKA is planned to be a next-generation radio telescope, with a total collecting area of about one square kilometre, operating from maybe as low as 150 MHz to about 20 GHz. The SKA will be made up of a dense core array, less than 10 km in diameter, together with array-stations with maximum baselines of thousands of kilometres, all connected by high-bandwidth optic-fibre cable. The SKA is being designed by an international consortium of eleven countries and will be built in about 10 year's time at a total cost of around A$2B.
In 2001, the ATNF led a successful proposal on behalf of the Australian astronomical community under the government's Major National Research Facilities (MNRF) Program. Our MNRF program has enabled increased Australian access to the Gemini telescopes, and has also funded SKA technology development, including the broadband upgrade of the AT Compact Array.
In 2000, the Government of Western Australia was approached by a consortium seeking to identify suitable locations for a new generation Low Frequency (10 - 240 MHz) radio telescope (LOFAR). LOFAR is in many respects a "Phase 1 SKA", and is an important testbed for many SKA technologies. LOFAR is a smaller-scale project (hundreds of kilometres maximum baseline) than the SKA, with more conventional antenna designs and lower bandwidth for its signal systems. Operations of LOFAR are targeted to start in 2006 - 2008.
Within the ATNF, the large degree of commonality between SKA, LOFAR, and MNRF has prompted the merger of these projects into a single SKA/LOFAR program. This new structure will enable greater focus to be applied to those technologies which are common to SKA and LOFAR, and will maximize the opportunities for technology development gained through LOFAR to benefit the Australian SKA effort.
LOFAR offers Australia:
The chance to host an international, high-visibility "big science" project;
The chance to engage Australian industry in international projects at the leading edge of information and computing technologies; and
An increased likelihood of attracting the SKA project to a high-quality radio-quiet site, by demonstrating the success of a world-class radio synthesis array located in outback Australia.
LOFAR and SKA will both be able to detect galaxies and interstellar gas at very high redshifts. Using these telescopes we hope to explore the very beginnings and evolution of the Universe, and answer fundamental questions of cosmology. LOFAR in particular will open a new window on the Universe as it will operate in a relatively unexplored wavelength band. Key science drivers for LOFAR include: early evolution of the Universe, including detecting the epoch of reionization, high-redshift galaxies, supernova remnants, pulsars, cosmic rays, solar terrestrial and ionospheric physics, and transients, including gamma-ray bursters.
In May 2003, a joint submission between CSIRO and the Government of Western Australia was prepared and submitted to the LOFAR Consortium (ASTRON in the Netherlands, and MIT and NRL in the USA) outlining the potential for a site in inland WA to be a location for LOFAR.
WA State Government have recognized the potential benefits to WA of hosting LOFAR, and have earmarked some significant funding which they would probably be able to contribute towards infrastructure, should LOFAR be located in WA. In addition, CSIRO has recognized the technological benefits of participating in LOFAR design and construction, and significant CSIRO funding is likely to become available if ATNF and other CSIRO Divisions participate in the design and construction of LOFAR.
In May 2003, a joint submission between CSIRO and the Government of Western Australia was prepared and submitted to the LOFAR Consortium (ASTRON in the Netherlands, and MIT and NRL in the USA) outlining the potential for a site in inland WA to be a location for LOFAR.
In September 2003, the Australian site was ranked by the LOFAR International Steering Committee to be the best site for LOFAR on scientific and technical merit. They have invited joint development of a business plan, including Australian participation, to allow planning to proceed. The understanding is that if a sufficiently attractive business plan cannot be developed, the technical selection would need to be reviewed, and an Australian siting should not be assumed until all factors, including the business plan, are evaluated. We are optimistic that satisfactory agreement can be reached, with the support of the Australian astronomical community, and that the LOFAR radio telescope can be sited in Australia, with initial operations expected in 2006 - 2008.
Given this opportunity, the National Committee for Astronomy established a Working Group in June 2003 to consider options for Australia's involvement in the LOFAR program. This group has prepared an "Options paper", outlining the choices that are available to the Australian astronomical community. Options include an upgrade path from LOFAR to the SKA involving cylindrical antennas to measure the equation of state of the Universe by detecting neutral hydrogen in high-redshift galaxies.
More information on the SKA/LOFAR Program is available on www.atnf.csiro.au/SKA .
2003 International SKA conference
The 2003 SKA International Workshop was held in the city of Geraldton in the Mid West coastal region of Western Australia from 27 - 31 July 2003, following the IAU General Assembly in Sydney. The SKA Workshop was followed by a two day meeting of the International SKA Steering Committee on 1 and 2 August (also in Geraldton).
The 2003 meeting attracted a record attendance, with over 135 delegates from 21 countries attending the conference. Many of the key scientific, technological and costing issues were discussed in considerable depth at the 2003 SKA Workshop.
An unusual feature of the meeting was the involvement of the local indigenous community. A local indigenous artist in Geraldton, Charmaine Green, painted the theme logo for the conference. The painting, entitled The Emu in the Sky, refers to the fact that the obscuring dust clouds in the Milky Way make the shape of an emu (see the 2002 ATNF annual report for a reproduction of the painting). At a certain time of year, the emu shape appears to be sitting, and the local Aborigines, the Yamaji people, know that this is the time to collect emu eggs for eating. At this same time, the constellation of Pleiades is low to the horizon. During the conference dinner, the original of The Emu in the Sky was auctioned, with the proceeds (over $1200) going to a local charity.
In parallel with SKA2003, the Marra Indigenous Art Collective, a collective of Aboriginal artists in Geraldton, prepared an exhibition in Geraldton of Aboriginal art on the theme of Aboriginal interpretations of the sky. A cultural highlight of the conference was a lunch attended by the Premier of Western Australia, Dr Geoff Gallop, several of the exhibition artists and the conference participants. This provided a rare opportunity for astronomers and indigenous artists to learn more about each others' craft. Many conference delegates purchased original artworks from the exhibition.
Ray Norris and Michelle Storey
(Ray.Norris@csiro.au) and (Michelle.Storey@csiro.au)