To be clear, I’ve been informed that the numbers for SKA Mid spectral resolution were accidentally swapped for SKA Low on the second slide and are off by a factor of two. Check the SKAO website for the actual numbers. #skao2025 📡
Chilean delegation at #skao2025. With A. Garufi playing double agent for Italy and Chile.
I don't think I've been to an astronomy conference with so few Chileans.
Catching up with some posting about #skao2025
Here's the Garufi and Perez duet on Monday. Pebbles, pebbles!
A big theme in #SKAO2025 has been science for transformation of societies. German investment in DZA to transform a former coal mining area. SKA-LOW building relationships with indigenous Wajarri Yamaji people in Oz. Radioastronomy as a tool for education and development across Africa.
I couldn’t agree more about those pretty public images… 😉
Sorry to have missed this great conference but huge thanks to everyone posting updates. It’s been great to follow along! #skao2025
#SKAO2025 finishes with the announcement that the new SKA Chief Scientist will be … Naomi McClure-Griffiths! Fantastic choice and she proceeds to a fireside chat with the outgoing (1yr to go) SKA DG Phil Diamond.
A fireside chat with Naomi and Phil on the conference stage.
Phil Diamond just announced the Naomi McClure Griffiths will be the new SKAO Chief Scientist! 🎉🔭📡 #skao2025
Great #SKAO2025 conference summary from McClure-Griffiths. Ups: Community! Real SKA image/dishes! So much SKA Precursor science! Downs: Timeline, especially for MID. Lessons: Pretty public images matter, data is difficult, telescopes are always delayed.
Naomi on a stage with the SKAO foam symbol and a slide of the audience photo behind her.
Naomi on a stage with the SKAO foam symbol and a slide of the AA* and Cycle 0 capabilities.
Naomi on a stage with the SKAO foam symbol and a slide of the SKAO timeline.
Naomi on a stage with the SKAO foam symbol and a slide of the exciting prospects for SKA.
Naomi McClure-Griffiths summarizing #skao2025. “Some thoughts from a (wise?) old(-ish) lady…” Repeating what one of the presenters said earlier: “SKA is a telescope built by radio astronomers for all astronomers”.
A few of the conference stage from above with a line of folks lined up on the side of the stage waiting for their time with the mic.
Starting to summarize the amazing #skao2025 science meeting. Science working group Chairs are summarizing in 2 mins some of the discussions over the last week and what’s new in the field and the context for AA* and AA4 of the SKA staged delivery. 🔭📡
Manisha Caleb standing on stage at the SKAO2025 meeting. Her slides are projected in the background.
@manishacaleb.bsky.social rounds off #skao2025 with the final plenary talk, on cosmology with fast radio bursts.
#RadioAstronomy @ozgrav.bsky.social
Good reminder of the long time scale and often moving goal posts for making huge astronomy telescopes a reality #SKAO2025
What a fun meeting #skao2025! I can not wait to see all the amazing science that will come from the SKAO. It was also great to catch up with so many fantastic scientists - including all these Dutch-affiliated (past, present and/or future) astronomers!
Early vs. Late Cosmic Dipoles Cosmic Microwave Sky vs. AGNs (infra-red quasars and radio galaxies) • CMB temperature dipole: = (369.82 +/- 0.1 1) km/s • Radio continuum source count dipole: vo = (1357 +/- 181) km/s • Infra-red quasar source count dipole: vo = (753 +/- 82) km/s • Purely kinematic interpretation wrong, small structure dipole is expected, but (so far) impossible to reconcile with CMB dipole • As for Hubble-Lemaitre rate: significant tension between early and late time measurements of inferred dipole velocities
Roadmap for SKAO Deciphering the Cosmic Source Count Dipole • AA2+: Sparse survey to verify existing results for source count dipole(s) • AA*: Precise measurement of the source count dipole over large sky areas, with various cuts, and preliminary redshift dependence • AA4: Conclusive measurement of the source count dipole's redshift dependence using HI and photometric redshifts • Photometric and spectroscopic redshifts from cross-matching with Euclid/4MOST/...
With apologies to the morning speakers, now back into plenaries after two days of parallel sessions and great discussions at #skao2025! Dominic Schwarz on the tension that exists in cosmology using radio source count dipole vs CMB dipole. As big or bigger than the Hubble tension! 🔭📡
Picture of a large group of Australian radio astronomers on the stage at the SKAO 2025 meeting.
Incredible showing from Australians past, present and future, at #SKAO2025 in Görlitz.
All very excited about getting the first data from the SKAO telescopes!
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!
#RadioAstronomy
“There’s nothing so useless as a radio photon” #SKAO2025
After two days of interesting EoR science discussion. EoR co-chairs Cath Trott and Adrian Liu giving a mini EoR update to the Cosmology SWG. Lots of cross-linkage here. #SKAO2025
Impressed by my tour around the Deutsches Zentrum für Astrophysik. Scaling up to *350* scientists and another 650 technical and admin staff over 10yrs. It’s really going to be a major addition to the astronomy scene. #SKAO2025
Lots of very detailed planning to outline the timeline to SKAO science at a granular level. “Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”
www.skao.int/en/647/timel... #SKAO2025
Ein Mann (Michael Kramer) steht auf einem Podium auf einer Theaterbühne und hält einen Vortrag mit dem Titel „Geheimnisvolles Universum: Explosionen, Schwarze Löcher und ferne Planeten“, hinter ihm wird ein Galaxienbild projiziert. Im Vordergrund stehen die Buchstaben „SKAO“.
Slide is the principles and user view of SRCNet.
SRC Net: We are a work in progress • The SRCNet project is outside SKA construction • No direct funding or contracts SKA Regional Centre Network • Our effort (people!) and resources (compute and storage) are pledged to us by a Resource Board (set up by SKAO Council in July 2024) • Our software development work is of similar size to the SKA SDP • Hardware needs to support testing (now) and be ready for Science Verification users (you!) by end 2026 • Target delivery in step (or just ahead) of SKA Science schedule • SRCNet Project end date mid 2028 (software delivery), but hardware growing continually as needed
Slide of SRCNet Timeline from version 0.1 which is working now to version 1.0 which will be ready in mid 2028.
Overview slide of SRCNet version 0.1 and the nodes involved around the world.
Rosie Bolton with SKA Regional Center Network (SRCNet) updates. I’m biased but this is super friggin exciting that we are building a global network to facilitate SKAO data access, visualization and analysis! #skao2025 🔭📡
Sensitivity calculator API slide
Setup Validator Tool slide
Adam Avison on the user support tools that are being built for the community to prepare for SKAO observations. #skao2025 🔭📡
Science verification • First chance the community will have to access SKA data - you will be closely involved! • Provide the Ideas and targets • Public data releases for scientific exploitation and fostering an early science return! • Validating data reduction workflows (allowing the SKA to begin to build trust in our generated data products) and the user experience • Begin to understand the potential of an observing mode • End-to-end test of the system • Important milestone before we put out the first call for proposals • Do all our systems work? submission, telescopes, Correlator Beam Formers, observing mode, tools, data processing, data delivery, SRCNet analysis • Are the Observatory staff prepared? • Allows us to build trust in our systems and pipelines, build momentum, demonstrate potential, science!
What we will provide and support in Science Verification Data products • Fully processed ODPs (Images, cubes, time domain products) • Calibrated constituent data products. Calibrated, averaged visibilities (including calibration solutions), time domain products. • Verification of pipelines is an important step in SV • Important for building trust • Verification periodically as modes/array mature/grow (even Into Cycle 0) Ancillary Products • A description of the processing that has been done to arrive at the fully processed data product (e.g., workflow scripts). • Quality assessment report. - Versioning information for the software, relevant coples of telescope model data etc • Local sky model SKAO Support A memo series so that early career researchers, e.g., could recelve technical credit, especially if a dataset doesn't result in publication • A helpdesk, and community training and workshops. Including documentation, videos, online drop in sessions, podcasts, community days. • Limited SRCNet rosources for analysis, visualisation, and Advanced Data Product creation.
Observatory-led data products delivered in SV • Significant data products will be required as part of our calibration procedures • Valuable resources for early scientific exploitation Delivered publicly as part of Science Verification Global Sky Model, other calibration data Low Global Sky Model plans shaping up (Mid comingl): AA2 A first pass at a large-coverage sky model for compact sources (excluding Galactic plane and regions with diffuse/complex emission). e.g. 100-150 MHz, 12", 15 min observations = 120 ply/bm in ~1-2 weeks of observing. AA* A good source model over the whole sky with good image fidelity. Could potentially get down to 30wly/bm with a similar survey or extend frequency coverage.
Nichol Cunningham on science verification and first acces to data for the science community. Data products includes calibrated average visibilities; ancillary data products. Support a memo series. Help desk, community workshops. #skao2025 🔭📡
Slide of capabilities with AA2.
Slide of Cycle 0 capabilities.
Slide of Cycle 3 capabilities.
Summary slide with a QR code to all the details that were presented in the talk.
Shari with the details and timeline of what will be the capabilities of SKAO at various stages from science verification to Cycle 3 and Key Science Projects. The QR code at the end of the talk is to a freshly released website with the details. #skao2025 🔭📡🧪 2/2
www.skao.int/en/647/timel...
Slide summarizing the capabilities of the two SKAO arrays.
The rough expected timeline of SKAO up to science operations.
More detailed timeline of SKAO scientific timeline from Commissioning to Cycle 3 where there will be Key Science Projects.
Slide about the data products from SKAO. Data products Observatory Data Products (SKAO responsibility) Observation-level data product Calibrated data products generated by SKAO pipelines based on data from a single execution of a Scheduling Block. Project-level data product Calibrated data products generated by combining several related observation-level data products, delivering the requirements of the PI as outlined in their original proposal. Advanced Data Products (created by users within the SRCNet) User-created products from detailed analysis of Observatory data, often involving visualization and comparison with other data.
Shari Breen on the roll out of observing modes and observatory milestones. As she said: “Ooo, the whispers!” 😂 #skao2025 🔭📡 1/2
