The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will be a radio telescope 50 times more sensitive and 100,000 times faster at mapping the sky than any existing instrument. This matters because current telescopes cannot see far enough or clearly enough to answer fundamental questions about the universe. The SKA will detect faint radio signals from the early cosmos, map hydrogen gas across cosmic time, and use pulsars—rapidly spinning dead stars—as natural laboratories for gravitational wave detection. Phase 1, at roughly 10% of the final array, will already be the world's most powerful radio telescope when it begins operations around 2019. The project is primarily curiosity-driven fundamental science. It will test theories of galaxy formation, dark energy, and gravity under extreme conditions. However, the engineering required—exascale computing, digital signal processing, and low-cost phased array antennas—has already attracted interest from more than 100 high-tech companies including Intel, IBM, and NVIDIA. The Cambridge team will lead the design of the Science Data Processor, the software and computing backbone that will handle the telescope's enormous data streams, and contribute to the low-frequency antenna array design. These technologies could eventually improve telecommunications, data processing, and timing systems that underpin global navigation and power grids.
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The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is the next generation radio telescope. It is a global project and a truly transformational concept, providing a 50-fold improvement in sensitivity and a 100,000 increase in mapping speed over all existing instruments. It is an interferometer covering the frequency range 70-MHz to 10-GHz and consists of three collector types with common communications, control and processing technologies. Construction of the SKA will be phased: SKA Phase 1 (SKA1, ~10% of the final instrument) will be built 2016-2019. Science operations with SKA1, which itself will be the world's most powerful radio telescope, will continue during the build out to Phase 2, SKA2, with completion in ~2025. The five key science projects (KSPs) defined by the astronomy community as driving the specifications of the SKA, together with the Exploration of the Unknown, are described in detail in "Science with the Square Kilometre Array" (eds. C. Carilli and S. Rawlings). SKA1 will enable revolutionary science, with a focus on pulsars (gravitational astronomy), and HI in the distant and the nearby Universe. SKA1 delivers breakthrough science early in the project, but truly transformational science return across all the KSPs needs the full capabilities of SKA2. The cutting-edge technologies of the SKA have direct and relevant interest to industry especially in the areas of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), High Performance "Exascale" Computing (HPC) requiring programming and operation techniques that support many thousands of individual processors; Digital signal processing (DSP); Electromagnetic design and modelling for high performance, low cost phased arrays, Synchronisation & Timing, and Signal & Data Transport. Recently, more than 100 UK and global high-tech commercial entities, including multi-nationals Intel, IBM, Selex Galileo, NVIDIA, CISCO, Microsoft and Nokia-Siemens, expressed interest in participating in the SKA; ~40 of the 100 companies were from the UK. This proposal is for support of the work at Cambridge during the first two years of the preconstruction phase of the project. Cambridge will undertake two high-profile roles. Cambridge will lead the work package "Science Data Processor" which will deliver all the required elements associated with the software and computing of the SKA (excluding the real time control and monitor). The team will also make signficant contributions to the architecture, requirements definition and overall design of the SDP element. The second role is a major input to the low-frequency aperture array design Cambridge will lead the system engineering work and overall architecture definition as well as the design and delivery of proptotype low-frequency antenna elements.
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