General Dynamics and Stratosat Datacom Ltd. have jointly installed an initial lot of radio antennas to form a telescope array in South Africa.
The MeerKAT radio telescope antennas deployed in South Africa’s Karoo region are built to receive remote radio-frequency signals, General Dynamics said Thursday.
MeerKAT is slated for full installation over the next three years and will compose 25 percent of the Square Kilometer Array, scheduled to complete in 2024.
“We are proud to be partnering with Stratosat in the construction of the MeerKAT array and look forward to the new and exciting discoveries it will yield,†said Chris Marzilli, president of General Dynamics C4 Systems.
General Dynamics SATCOM Technologies’ Duisburg, Germany-based facility worked to design the MeerKAT antennas and incorporate an indexer for scientists to alter the radio frequency.