Lab to life: Look up

During attempts to investigate the universe with optical telescopes, large areas remain undetectable. This is because visible light is obscured when trying to pass through cosmic dust. One solution is to use radio waves which are able to penetrate this dust and look out through space and time.

At the Institute of Space Sciences and Astronomy, Iman Farhat, together with Prof. Kristian Zarb Adami and Prof. Charles Sammut, is developing a radio antenna which can be printed like a newspaper and rolled out like a carpet. This tech- nology will eventually form part of the international Square Kilometre Array project, an effort that is seeing thousands of radio telescopes being built in South Africa and Australia. A total collection area of approximately one million square metres and wide range of frequencies allow 50 times the sensitivity and 10,000 times the speed compared to any other radio instrument.

ISSA’s first small scale prototype met SKA’s application and requirement – an immensely motivating initial success. A larger version is now being built with the aim of testing the array in an environment close to its real-world conditions.

Involving approximately 100 organisations across 20 countries, SKA is a behemoth of a project. The University of Malta will be part of this transformational science in astronomical observation, breaking new ground with every step and redefining our understanding of space as we know it. For more read the in-depth feature in ‘Think’ magazine on www.um.edu.mt/think/look-up↑/