Four sites proposed for Square Kilometer Array telescope

Science : This summer, radio astronomers will recommend a location for the planned International Square Kilometer Array (SKA), a network of 4000 radio dishes spread over an area several thousand kilometers across. SKA will be 100 times as sensitive as today’s best radio telescopes. There are four sites competing to host the telescope: one in the Karoo region in South Africa, another in an arid plain in Western Australia; the third in Argentina on a high, dry plateau; the fourth is between the angular karst hills of southeastern China. The SKA’s international steering committee is looking for a stable ionosphere, predictable weather, and good infrastructure. But the main priority is for the region selected to maintain radio silence, as many current radio telescope sites suffer from radio interference brought about by the expansion of urban centers. Read it