MeerKAT, Radio interferometer in Northern Cape, South Africa

MeerKAT is a radio telescope facility with 64 antennas, each 13.5 meters in diameter, distributed across the semi-arid Karoo region. The antennas work together and transmit their data through fiber-optic cables to a central processing building, where specialized computers analyze the observations.

South Africa submitted an expression of interest to host the Square Kilometre Array in 2003, and the locally designed MeerKAT was folded into the SKA's first phase. Originally the 20-receptor Karoo Array Telescope, it was renamed MeerKAT ("more of KAT") after the government raised the budget for 64 receptors. The 64 dishes were built from 2014 to 2018, and Deputy President David Mabuza inaugurated the telescope on 13 July 2018.

The facility serves as a hub for scientific collaboration in South Africa, drawing astronomers and students from around the world. It strengthens local expertise in radio astronomy and connects South African research with global projects.

MeerKAT is not open to visitors; it operates inside a radio quiet zone in Meerkat National Park, where radio-emitting devices are restricted. Access to the Karoo site is controlled by SARAO, and the array is run remotely from Cape Town. The dishes stand on gravel in semi-desert terrain, so the site is reached by road through the Northern Cape.

The facility captured unprecedented images of the galactic center, revealing massive balloon-like structures extending hundreds of light-years above the Milky Way. This discovery changed our understanding of how energy from supermassive black holes affects galaxies.