Talk: The Square Kilometre Array Observatory - big data and transformational science
This event is part of the Royal Society's Summer Science Exhibition 2025.
The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) will be the next generation radio telescope for astronomy. The observatory comprises of two telescope arrays across three continents and when finished will be the largest scientific facility in the history of humankind. The SKAO will answer key scientific questions, from the origin of the structure we see in our Universe today, the testing Einstein’s theory of gravity, to the birthplace of life in the cosmos. Such a large facility will naturally create vast amounts of data, around 10 million Gigabytes per hour of operation, that raises new challenges in engineering and computing.
Join Chris Pearson, from the Unveiling the Universe: exploring the Cosmos with the SKA Observatory main exhibit, to explore the transformational science the SKAO will deliver and the engineering and computational challenges that need to be met to achieve this.
Attending the event
The talk will be held on Thursday 3 July 2025, 2pm – 2.30pm.
- Free to attend, no ticket required
- The room has limited capacity, so we recommend that visitors arrive at least 10-15 minutes before the talks. We operate a first-come, first-served policy
- The talk will take place in person at the Royal Society and will also be livestreamed on the Royal Society YouTube channel
- Live subtitles will be available in-person and virtually
- Suitable for students (14+)
- Travel and accessibility information and details on planning your visit - contact us directly to arrange any specific accessibility requirements
- Food and drink will be available for purchase at our onsite café
For all enquiries, please email us.