SKA South Africa Overview

Thomas KuselMeerKAT System Engineering Manager

April 2011

Overview

1. Square Kilometer Array (SKA)

2. South African SKA Project – MeerKAT System Overview– Reliability approach

International Square Kilometer Array (SKA) project

Next generation astronomy instruments

Infra-red

X-ray Radio (low freq)

Optical

Radio (high Freq)

Next generation astronomy instruments

Key science:• Dark energy, Dark matter• Origin of magnetism • Cradle of life• Evolution of galaxies • The dark ages• Tests of gravity

Sensitivity

SKA vital statistics

• Site:– Final candidate sites: South Africa & Australia

• Global: 55 institutes, 19 countries

• Budget: ~ € 1.5 Billion (for phases 1 & 2)

• Timescale: – Site decision 2012

– Phase 1 (10% scale) 2018

– Phase 2 (full scale, low & mid frequencies) 2022

• Physical:– Up to 1500 dishes (15m) within 5km radius core

– Plus 1500 dishes spread to 3000km radius

– Plus aperture array and sparse array

– Connected to a massive data processor

SKA artists impression

• What makes this instrument unique?– Large collecting area (total “square kilometer”)

• High sensitivity allows detection in the very early universe

– Wide field of view (small dishes)• Fast survey speed

– Large physical extent (3000km)• Very high resolution

– Wide frequency range• (70-300MHz : 300MHz-10GHz : 10-25GHz)

• Allows wide range of science

SKA Offset DishesSKA Dishes

SKA Dense Aperture ArraysSKA dense arrays

SKA Sparse Aperture ArraySKA Dense Aperture ArraysSKA sparse arrays

SKA South Africa

Square Kilometre Array in AfricaRadio Astronomy ReserveSite bid: Radio Astronomy reserve

SKA SA project overview

SKA South Africa

MeerKAT telescopeSite Bid Human Capital Development

Win the bid to host SKA in South Africa- Stakeholder interaction- Site selection- Legislation

Build a world class radio telescope:− Must be world class,

irrespective of SKA− SKA pathfinder: aligned

with SKA technologies− Next generation

technologies

Develop skills and expertise in science & engineering

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT development

2004

MeerKAT planning, team recruited,

prototypes and R&D

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2016

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT development

2004

MeerKAT planning, team recruited,

prototypes and R&D

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2016

XDM (1 dish)

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT development

2004

MeerKAT planning, team recruited,

prototypes and R&D

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2016

XDM (1 dish)

KAT-7 array(7 dishes)

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT development

2004

MeerKAT planning, team recruited,

prototypes and R&D

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2016

XDM (1 dish)

KAT-7 array(7 dishes)

MeerKAT(64 dishes)

MeerKAT will be a world-class radio telescope in its own right(Largest radio telescope in the southern hemisphere)

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT development

2004

MeerKAT planning, team recruited,

prototypes and R&D

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2016

XDM (1 dish)

KAT-7 array(7 dishes)

MeerKAT(64 dishes)

SKA Phase 1(250 dishes)

MeerKAT - progress to date

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT progressStarting point:- Remote location- No infrastructure

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT progress: InfrastructurePower lines Roads

Optical fibre network

On-site manufacturing facilitiesRFI shielded processor facilities

Support facilities and accomodation

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT progress: infrastructure

Infrastructure:- Power- Roads- Manufacturing facilities- High speed data links- Accommodation- Maintenance facilities- Vehicles- Etc.

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT progress: Telescope

Array processing facilities

Composite dishes RF Electronics High performance computing Antenna control

Cryogenic receiversProcessing Algorithms

Mechanical structures

Radio Astronomy ReserveMeerKAT progress: telescope

Telescope technologies:- Mechanical structures- Cryogenics- Electromagnetics- RF- Optical fibre networks- High speed digital electronics- High performance computing- Algorithmic

MeerKAT system reliability

Importance of reliability

• Remote location– Remote operations

– 7 hours drive to Cape Town

– Only small towns close by

– Maintenance staff on site is difficult (turno system)

• Minimise on-site acitivities – RF interference risk

• Large number of antennas (64 for MeerKAT; 250 for SKA Phase 1)

– Drives maintenance cost

• High system availability requirement– 85% of time available for science at full performance

– 24 / 7 operations

System Engineering approach to reliability

Setting reliability targets for the system

(This is the easy part)

Designing for reliability

Reliability allocation; Architecture decisions;Technology choices.

FMECA on designed system

Qualifying the design for reliability

Testing qualification models to verify that the design meets the reliability targets.

Accelerated life time testing on mechanical systems.

Refinement of reliability allocation and FMECA based on test results.

(This is difficult and expenesive)

Measuring operational reliability – Integrated Logistic Support database.

Refine reliability models.

Modifications to improve reliability

Requirements definition

Architecture design Detail Design & qualification

Production Operation

Production quality control

System Engineering philosophy:

Specify Design Qualify Measure

Reliability: