SKAO publishes 2022 Annual Report

The report can be read and downloaded on Issuu here.

The 50-page publication highlights many major developments in 2022, including the Observatory’s growing membership, expanding presence in its telescope host countries, and a huge push on the procurement front which saw 46 contracts signed by the end of the year. This amounted to approximately €470m committed since the start of construction activities in July 2021.

“Despite the geopolitical instability and macroeconomic uncertainty, the performance described in this report attests that the SKAO has remained strong and committed in the pursuit of its goals, working hard through its Council and members,” said SKAO Council Chair Dr Catherine Cesarsky.

The year started with the Observatory welcoming Switzerland as its eighth member state, and the following months saw both France and Germany begin the formal processes to join the SKAO. 

The SKAO’s presence grew substantially through 2022 in its telescope host countries Australia and South Africa. It signed key agreements with partner organisations CSIRO and SARAO, established an interim Engineering Operations Centre in Australia and Science Operations Centre in South Africa, and recruited dozens of new staff members in both countries, in addition to expanding the workforce at SKAO Global Headquarters in the UK.

Membership of the SKA Science Working Groups – one of the most important forums for engagement with the scientific community – rose to its highest ever level, with 1,150 astronomers from all over the world involved in the 14 groups during 2022. 

The report also notes the SKAO’s growing role in advocating for astronomy on the international stage, as permanent observer at the UN’s Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, and a co-host of the International Astronomical Union Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference, established in 2022 in collaboration with the US National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab. 

SKAO Director-General Prof. Philip Diamond said: “The SKAO’s unwavering commitment to fostering international collaboration in these uncertain and unstable times, pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery, remains steadfast as we continue to advance towards the construction and operation of the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescopes.”

If you can't access the Issuu platform, you can download the annual report PDFs here.