SKA ORGANISATION

Their core work

SKA Organisation is the intergovernmental body responsible for delivering the Square Kilometre Array, the world's largest radio telescope. They manage the design, construction planning, and international coordination of SKA infrastructure, which will collect and process unprecedented volumes of astronomical data. Their work spans radio astronomy instrumentation, massive data processing pipelines, and building the global partnerships needed to operate a multi-billion-euro research facility. In H2020, they focused on detailed infrastructure design and integrating SKA into the broader European research infrastructure ecosystem.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Early H2020 participation (2016-2018) was tightly focused on SKA itself — detailed infrastructure design, radio telescope engineering, and the big data challenges of the instrument. From 2019 onward, the focus broadened significantly toward cross-infrastructure collaboration, joining ESCAPE which linked SKA with CERN, CTA, KM3NeT, and other ESFRI landmarks around shared challenges in open science, virtual observatories, and EOSC. The trajectory shows SKA Organisation moving from "building our telescope" to "connecting our telescope into Europe's research infrastructure fabric."

SKA Organisation is increasingly positioning itself as a connector between major European research infrastructures rather than operating in isolation, making them a strong partner for cross-facility data and open science initiatives.

How they like to work

SKA Organisation primarily joins consortia as a participant (4 of 5 projects), contributing its domain-specific expertise to larger collaborative efforts. They coordinated one project (IN-SKA) focused specifically on their own infrastructure design. With 90 unique partners across 20 countries, they operate within large, international consortia — typical for ESFRI-class research infrastructures that require broad coordination across many institutions and nations.

Extensive network of 90 partners spanning 20 countries, reflecting SKA's nature as a global mega-science project. Their partners include major European observatories, ESFRI facilities (CERN, ESO, CTA), and e-infrastructure providers, giving them reach well beyond radio astronomy.

What sets them apart

SKA Organisation is the only entity managing what will be the world's most sensitive radio telescope — there is no equivalent competitor. Their participation in H2020 gives them direct connections to virtually every major European astronomy and particle physics infrastructure (CERN, ESO, CTA, KM3NeT, ELT). For any consortium needing credibility in big data astronomy, radio science, or ESFRI-level infrastructure governance, SKA Organisation brings unmatched visibility and technical authority.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ESCAPE
  Largest EC contribution (EUR 460K) and most ambitious scope — clustering SKA with CERN, CTA, and other ESFRI landmarks to build shared open science infrastructure and EOSC integration.
• IN-SKA
  The only project SKA Organisation coordinated, focused on detailed Phase 1 design of the Square Kilometre Array itself — their core mission.