2 November 2019 | New Scientist | 27Perfect exposure
Photographer Enrico Sacchetti
THIS dramatic photo shows the
test bed for the world’s largest,
most powerful radio telescope,
the Square Kilometre Array (SKA).
The dishes are part of the MeerKAT
telescope in South Africa, a
precursor to the SKA project that
will be built in South Africa and
Australia from 2020. The first
SKA antenna prototype (inset)
was installed earlier this year.
MeerKAT consists of 64
interlinked antennas and can
detect synchrotron radiation,
radio waves generated when
charged particles travel at near-
light speed. The telescope is so
sensitive to electromagnetic
radiation that photographer
Enrico Sacchetti’s camera had to
be tested before he went on-site.
“I asked if I could take a
drone or hire a helicopter. They
said, ‘No way!’ ” says Sacchetti.
Instead, he hiked up a nearby hill.
He was about to give up, but then
the sun came out.
Astronomers using MeerKAT
have already discovered two
huge bubbles of high-energy
particles protruding from the
area surrounding the Milky
Way’s central supermassive
black hole. Even the precursor
to the SKA is producing
unprecedented images. ❚
Layal Liverpool