The CNRS welcomes France’s commitment to the construction and operation of the largest radio astronomy instrument ever built

The SKA Observatory will design and build the most sensitive radio astronomy instrument ever created, operating over an unmatched radio-wave range. It is expected to study the formation of the very first stars and galaxies shortly after the Big Bang. SKA will produce a data stream that exceeds today's global internet traffic and Facebook's current storage needs. So it will need supercomputers that will make it the world's main 'big data' astronomical observatory. The CNRS had classified the SKA instrument as one of its priorities and was already leading 'Maison SKA-France.' The CNRS, in charge of 'Maison SKA-France', welcomes France's decision to become a member of the SKA Observatory (SKAO), an intergovernmental organisation that will build and then operate what will be the largest radio astronomy telescope for the next 10 to 20 years. With its unparalleled observation capabilities, the SKA will enable important advances including studies on how the first light sources in the universe emerged after the Big Bang, how magnetic fields impact evolutionary processes in celestial objects, testing of gravitational theories and general relativity and detection of gravitational waves. And of course, with SKA scientists will explore the unknown.