KAT-7 is a
radio telescope
A radio telescope is a specialized antenna (radio), antenna and radio receiver used to detect radio waves from astronomical radio sources in the sky. Radio telescopes are the main observing instrument used in radio astronomy, which studies the r ...
situated in the
Meerkat National Park
Meerkat National Park is a large South African National Parks, National Park in the Northern Cape, South Africa, that encompasses the Square Kilometre Array's MeerKAT, Precision Array for Probing the Epoch of Reionization, PAPER and Hydrogen ...
, in the
Northern Cape
The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...
of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. Developed as the precursor engineering test bed to the larger
MeerKAT
The meerkat (''Suricata suricatta'') or suricate is a small mongoose found in southern Africa. It is characterised by a broad head, large eyes, a pointed snout, long legs, a thin tapering tail, and a brindled coat pattern. The head-and-body ...
telescope, previously known as Karoo Array Telescope (KAT), it has become a science instrument in its own right. The construction was completed in 2011 and commissioning in 2012. It also served as a technology demonstrator for
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
's bid to host the
Square Kilometre Array
The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is an intergovernmental organisation, intergovernmental international radio telescope project being built in Australia (low-frequency) and South Africa (mid-frequency). The combining infrastructure, the Square ...
.
KAT-7 is the first Radio telescope to be built with a composite reflector and uses a
stirling pump for 75 K cryogenic cooling. The telescope was built to test various system for the MeerKAT array, from the
ROACH
Roach or The Roach may refer to:
Animals
* Cockroach, various insect species of the order Blattodea
* Common roach (''Rutilus rutilus''), a fresh and brackish water fish of the family Cyprinidae
** ''Rutilus'' or roaches, a genus of fishes
* Cal ...
correlators designed and manufactured in
Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
, now used by various telescopes internationally, to composite construction techniques.
Technical specifications
KAT-7 consist of 7 dishes of 12 metres in diameter, each a prime focus
reflecting telescope
A reflecting telescope (also called a reflector) is a telescope that uses a single or a combination of curved mirrors that reflect light and form an image. The reflecting telescope was invented in the 17th century by Isaac Newton as an alternati ...
.
Performance
In April 2010 four of the seven dishes were linked together as an integrated system to produce its first interferometric image of an astronomical object. In Dec 2010, there was a successful detection of
very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) fringes between the
Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory
The Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory (HartRAO) is a radio astronomy observatory, located in a natural bowl of hills at Hartebeesthoek just south of the Magaliesberg mountain range, and about 50 km west of Johannesburg, Gauteng, Sout ...
's 26 m dish and one of the KAT-7 dishes.
First HartRAO-KAT-7 VLBI fringes signal new capability
See also
* Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder
The ASKAP radio telescope is a radio telescope array located at Inyarrimanha Ilgari Bundara, the CSIRO Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory in the Mid West region of Western Australia.
The facility began as a technology demonstrator for the ...
* Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory
The Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory (HartRAO) is a radio astronomy observatory, located in a natural bowl of hills at Hartebeesthoek just south of the Magaliesberg mountain range, and about 50 km west of Johannesburg, Gauteng, Sout ...
* List of radio telescopes
This is a list of radio telescopes – over one hundred – that are or have been used for radio astronomy. The list includes both single dishes and interferometric arrays. The list is sorted by region, then by name; unnamed telescopes are in ...
* South African Astronomical Observatory
The South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO) is the national centre for optical and infrared astronomy in South Africa. It was established in 1972. The observatory is run by the National Research Foundation of South Africa. The facility's f ...
for optical astronomy in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
* Precision Array for Probing the Epoch of Reionization
The Donald C. Backer Precision Array for Probing the Epoch of Reionization (PAPER) is a radio interferometer funded by the National Science Foundation to detect 21 cm hydrogen (HI) fluctuations occurring when the first galaxies ionized inter ...
References
External links
SKA South Africa
eXperimental Development Model (XDM) at Hartebeeshoek
{{radio-astronomy
Astronomical observatories in South Africa
Buildings and structures in the Northern Cape
Karoo
Astronomy protected areas of South Africa
Square Kilometre Array