Science

2024 MWA Project Meeting in Switzerland

This year’s MWA project meeting was held in Lausanne, Switzerland, from August 28th to 30th, hosted by the Swiss consortium through SCITAS-EPFL. The event brought together researchers, engineers, and experts from around the world, united in advancing radio astronomy and the MWA’s scientific objectives. The three-day meeting featured a range of presentations, discussions, and collaborative […]

2024B Call for Proposals

Overview The Call for Proposals for MWA observing semester 2024B is now open. This is for the allocation of observing time in the Guaranteed Time and Open Access categories, nominally during the period October 28, 2024 to End-March 2025 (subject to availability of the array). The telescope will be in the extended configuration for the […]

MWA Director Professor Steven Tingay recognised at the 2024 Western Australian of the Year Awards

Curtin astronomy leader honoured at Western Australian of the Year Awards

Prof. Steven Tingay, winner of APM Professions Award category of the Western Australian of the Year Awards 2024

We would like to congratulate our very own Professor Steven Tingay for winning the APM Professions Award category of the Western Australian of the Year Awards last night! The prestigious award-giving body recognises Steven’s outstanding contribution to the state, and his crucial role in securing half of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project for Western […]

MWA Project Meeting 2024

This year, we’re thrilled to announce that our meeting will be hosted in Switzerland, marking the latest addition to the MWA Collaboration’s international network of collaborators. Radio astronomers are invited to join us from Wednesday, August 28th, to Friday, August 30th, 2024, at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) in the picturesque city of […]

Shadow Minister of Science and CSIRO CEO visited the MWA

CSIRO’s incoming CEO, Prof. Doug Hilton, together with the Shadow Minister for Science, Hon. Paul Fletcher, embarked on a notable tour of the MWA as an integral part of their visit to the Inyarrimanha Ilgari Bundara Murchison Radio Astronomy Observatory. The said visit not only marked a collaborative effort to foster a deeper appreciation for […]

Finalist for the 2023 Engagement Australia Excellence Awards and Curtin Global Awards

2023 September 27 – The MWA Collaboration has been selected as a finalist for the 2023 Engagement Australia Excellence Awards, in the category ‘Excellence in International Engagement’!

Radio Astronomy meets Art!

21 September 2023- MWA and Yamaji Art collaborate to create hand-painted 3D beam patterns.

MWA 10 Year Anniversary

The Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) project is celebrating a decade of operations this week. To mark the significant occasion, the global astronomy community has gathered in Perth for the milestone. 2023 July 26, Curtin University

2023B Call for Proposals

Overview The Call for Proposals for MWA observing semester 2023B is now open. This is for the allocation of observing time in the Guaranteed Time and Open Access categories, nominally during the period September 29, 2023 to February 29, 2024 (subject to availability of the array). The telescope will be in the compact configuration for the duration […]

Hiding In Plain Sight: Astronomers Find New Type Of Stellar Object

“They missed it because they hadn’t expected to find anything like it.” 2023 July 19, Nature

MWAX Correlator Description Paper

The technical description paper, “MWAX: A new correlator for the Murchison Widefield Array” by Morrison et al. has now been published in PASA. 2023 April 27

A Very ‘SMART’ New Survey

Finding the astronomical equivalent of a needle in a haystack, the ‘SMART’ way! A team led by ICRAR-Curtin researchers have published details in PASA of how they are using the MWA telescope to find new pulsars in our galaxy. 2023 April 27, Space Australia

2023A Call for Proposals

Overview The MWA Semester 2023A Call for Proposals (CFP-2023-A) is now open, for observations during the period April 1, 2023 to August 15, 2023 (subject to availability of the array). 2023A Details This Call is for the allocation of telescope observing time in the Guaranteed Time and Open Access categories. The array will be in […]

SKA Construction Commencement Ceremony

Thirty years after the Square Kilometre Array radio telescope was proposed and a decade after WA was chosen to host the project, work is starting on the final stage of one of humanity’s greatest ever scientific endeavours. 2022 December 5, The West Australian

The Economic and Social Impact of the MWA

In 2022, Ernst and Young (EY) delivered an assessment of the Economic and Social Impact of the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). The report examines the strategic, financial, and scientific dimensions of the MWA, and finds that the MWA has had a significant impact.

Women in Technology WA (WiTWA) Award Winners

MWA researcher Dr Natasha Hurley-Walker and MWA operations team member Mia Walker won Shining Star awards at the annual Women in Technology WA Awards, 2022 November 18.

Our own Moon is helping astronomers unlock the secrets of the early Universe

What does the Moon have to do with our quest to understand the beginnings of our Universe? 2022 November 18, Sky at Night Magazine

2022 December Project Meeting

This two-day science event will be held online on December 07-08, 2022. Click through for the event page and to register.

Pia Wadjarri Artwork – Gurlgamarnu

Students from Pia Wadjarri visited Curtin to learn more about the MWA telescope.

On the march toward nanohertz gravitational waves using millisecond pulsars

Pulsars create repeating flashes of radio light, and are so regular that you can set your watch to them. In fact, that’s exactly what some astronomers want to do! 2022 June 28, ICRAR

Western Australia’s top science award win

PhD candidate Kathryn Ross has co-won the 2022 WA science student of the year award! Ross’s research using the MWA telescope has helped shed light on our understanding of galaxy evolution. 2022 August 30, ICRAR

Major upgrade to outback telescope a resounding success

A $1 million Australian Government grant has recently enabled the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) to undergo ‘brain surgery’. 2022 March 23, AAL

Mysterious Object Unlike Anything Astronomers Have Seen Before

A team mapping radio waves in the Universe has discovered something unusual that releases a giant burst of energy three times an hour. 2022 January 27, Nature

Astronomers Capture Black Hole Eruption Spanning 16 Times the Full Moon in the Sky

2021 December 23, Nature Astronomy

Closing in on the first light in the Universe – the LoBES survey

The early Universe was dark, filled with a hot soup of opaque particles. These condensed to form neutral hydrogen which coalesced to form the first stars in what astronomers call the Epoch of Reionisation (EoR).
2021 November 29, ASTRO3D

Curtin’s Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence going where no radio astronomy has gone before

2021 September 3, Curtin Media Release

Pawsey Prepares for the Data Deluge from the Square Kilometre Array

2021 July 5, HPC Wire

Green Light Given For Construction Of World’s Largest Radio Telescope Arrays

2021 June 29, SKAO

Stacking the odds

2021 June 3, Nature

‘Campfires’ may drive heating of solar atmosphere

Observations suggest small flares are corona’s mystery heat source. 2021 May 7, Science

Outback radio telescope discovers dense, spinning, dead star

2021 April 21, ICRAR, Particle, Springer, Science Daily, The West Australian

Astronomers see a ‘space jellyfish’

2021 March 18, ICRAR, IFL Science, Medium, Science News, Popular Mechanics

Ten computer codes that transformed science

2021 January 20, Nature

Gamers pave the way for million dollar grant for telescope ‘brain’ upgrade

A new $1 million Federal Government grant to Curtin University will enable a major upgrade to the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). 2020 December 10, Curtin Media Release

WA’s leading scientists recognised in Premier’s Science Awards

Professor Steven Tingay (Curtin) was jointly named WA’s Scientist of the Year 2020, for his impactful research and early leadership of the MWA project. 2020 September 30, WA Government

Australian telescope finds no signs of alien technology in 10 million star systems

2020 September 8, ICRAR, ABC News, The West Australian

Pawsey Supercomputing Centre Spins Up ‘Garrawarla’ for Astronomical Insight

2020 August 30, HPC Wire

Defence Minister releases statement outlining plans for defence in space

2020 July 29, Defence Connect

Review finds investment in Australian astronomy is paying dividends

2020 July 8, Australian Academy of Science

Preparations complete in Western Australia for construction of world’s largest telescope

2020 June 10, ICRAR

Now, more light on Sun’s coronal heating puzzle

Scientists in Pune discover long-sought tiny explosions on the Sun. 2020 June 4, The Hindu, WIO News, Astronomy.com

WA Science and Industry Leaders put their heads together to search for the first stars and galaxies

2020 March 24, ICRAR, DUG

The Biggest Black Hole Eruption Ever Seen

The blast is about five times bigger than the previous record holder. 2020 March 4, Nature World News,

Pawsey Supercomputing Centre Boosts Astronomy Research with New HPE Supercomputer

2020 February 27, HPC Wire

Curtin planetary sciences and health research boosted with ARC funding

2020 January 16, Mirage News

Diversity and inclusion in Australian astronomy

2019 December 6, Nature

West Australian telescope finds 9,000-year-old supernova remnant

Using the GLEAM surveym Dr Hurley-Walker and her colleagues discovered the remnants of 27 massive stars that exploded in supernovae at the end of their lives. 2019 November 20, ICRAR and ABC news

Astronomers Search For Light From Dark Ages Before Stars Existed

2019 December 9, Forbes

Scientists inch closer than ever to signal from cosmic dawn

Researchers using the Murchison Widefield Array radio telescope have taken a new and significant step toward detecting a signal from the period in cosmic history when the first stars lit up the universe. 2019 November 26, Brown University

Probing the Secrets of the Universe From Deep in the Australian Outback

Extreme heat, ants, and stray cell phones are big concerns. 2019 November 13, Atlas Obscura

Shining a light on the Cosmic Dark Ages

Astronomers are closing in on a signal that has been travelling across the Universe for 12 billion years, bringing them nearer to understanding the life and death of the very earliest stars. 2019 September 10, The Age, ASTRO3D, VICE, Phys.org,

The quest to unlock the secrets of the baby Universe

2019 August 14, Nature

Prepping for Even Bigger Data in the Era of Interferometry

2019 April 26, AAS Nova

Science world focused on WA as telescopes scan the universe

2019 March 28, Business News Western Australia

Innovative research uses remote radio telescope to detect cosmic rays

2019 January 15, Curtin University Media Release

Synchronised telescope dance puts limits on mysterious flashes in the sky

2018 October 30, ICRAR

Western Australia’s science finds strength in its isolation

2018 October 17, Nature

Moon helps reveal secrets of the Universe

2018 October 17, ICRAR and Curtin

Telescope maps cosmic rays in Large and Small Magellanic Clouds

2018 September 4, ICRAR

International researchers can now map the universe with Murchison

2018 July, Australian Access Federation

WA astronomers partner with the defence industry to monitor space

2018 July 19, ICRAR

MWA: expanding the horizons of science

2018 July 9, Curtin University Media Release

Meet the ABC’s Top 5 scientists for 2018

2018 June 5, ABC

Future full of stars: WA touted as prime location for space agency hub

2018 May 23, The Age

A big step toward the Square Kilometre Array in Western Australia

2018 April 23, Curtin University Media Release

Outback radio telescope listens in on interstellar visitor

2018 April 13, ICRAR, Curtin

Telescopes team up to study giant galaxy

2017 December 12, Curtin University Media Release

Far From Radio Interference, the Square Kilometre Array Takes Root in South Africa and the Australian Outback

2017 November 28, IEEE Spectrum

Major milestone for key radio-astronomy project

2017 November 14, Curtin University Media Release

Colliding neutron stars revealed by gravitational waves and massive fireball

2017 October 17, Curtin University Media Release, ABC News

The future of astronomy in Australia

2017 August 28, Nature Astronomy

These radio telescopes see almost to the beginning of time

Two Australian radio telescopes have a humble goal: uncovering the universe’s secrets. 2017 August 1, CNet

Hunting molecules with the MWA

2017 July 21, ICRAR

Characterizing the Murchison Widefield Array Beam Pattern

2017 June 9, Altair Hyperworks

Astronomers probe swirling particles in halo of starburst galaxy

2017 March 28, ICRAR

Astronomers hazard a ride in a ‘drifting carousel’ to understand pulsating stars

What sounds like a stomach-turning ride at an amusement park might hold the key to unravelling the mysterious mechanism that causes beams of radio waves to shoot out from pulsars − super-magnetic rotating stars in our Galaxy. 2017 March 21, Curtin University Media Release

SKA: Tooling up down under for the world’s most powerful telescope

2017 February 27, Cosmos

The Square Kilometre Array: going to infinity and beyond

2017 February 24, Financial Review

2016 in pictures: The best science images of the year

2016 December 16, Nature

GLEAM: Australian desert telescope views sky in radio technicolour

2016 October 26, ICRAR

Preparing to study the epoch of reionization

2016 October 10, Phys.org

SETI has new eyes on the skies

2016 August 1, Room

High tech partnership paying off

The recently launched Cisco Internet of Everything Innovation Centre at Curtin University is already generating dividends, with a successful trial last week of a 100Gb/s data link between the MWA and Curtin. 2016 March 16, Curtin

LIGO makes waves with gravitational announcement, and Australian telescopes follow up

2016 March 7, ICRAR

Distant galaxy identified as the origin of mysterious bright burst

For the first time an international team of scientists, using a combination of radio and optical telescopes including the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA), has managed to identify the precise location of a fast radio burst (FRB). 2016 February 25, Curtin University Media Release

Time machine in the Western Australian outback obtains funding boost

2015 October 30, Curtin University Media Release

The Square Kilometre Array: radio silence in Western Australia for most powerful telescope in history

2015 July 17, The Guardian

Curtin University gets plaudits for Murchison Widefield Array work

Curtin University’s work with the Murchison Widefield Array was recognised at the Thomson Reuters Citation and Innovation awards. 2015 June 14, PerthNow

Sydney University physics undergraduate maps huge plasma tubes in the sky

2015 June, CAASTRO, Physics Today, The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH)

World’s most powerful telescope, the Square Kilometre Array, set for Murchison in regional WA

2015 May 21, Perth Now

Radio astronomy backed by big data projects

2015 April 21, Phys.org

Monster telescope needs mind-bending mathematics to uncover secrets of the universe

2014 November 25, Phys.org

ASU joins pathbreaking radio telescope project to study early universe

2014 November 24, Press Release (Arizona State University)

A glimpse of cosmic dawn

Astronomers are attempting to look back to when the first stars and galaxies lit up and changed the universe forever. 2014 November 7, Science

Artists share sky with SKA scientists

Astronomy project unites indigenous artists from WA and South Africa. 2014 October 3, Yahoo News

Radio galaxy discovery near Earth spurs more questions

2014 May 23, Phys.org

Telescope to track space junk using youth radio station

A combination of pop songs, talkback radio and cutting-edge science has enabled Australian astronomers to identify a way to prevent catastrophic, multi-billion dollar space junk collisions, a new study has revealed. November 29, 2013, CAASTRO, Science Daily and CNet, December 02 by Voice of America

Vic researchers to play significant role in global project

2013 November 25, Scoop Education

Work towards largest telescope awarded: Return on astronomy investment begins

2013 November 15, Press Release (Curtin)

Pawsey powerhouse supercomputer crunches pre-SKA data torrent

2013 July 23, Press Release (ICRAR)

MWA Operations Launch

2013 July 08-09

Radio astronomy cranks up in WA’s Mid West

2013 June 07, 9News

The Heart of Darkness

In the remote outback of Western Australia, astronomers are tuning in on the universe in the hope of unravelling the secrets of the cosmic dark ages. 2013 February, Qantas In The Air

Preparations complete in Western Australia for construction of world’s largest telescope

2020 June 10, Curtin Press Release

COLLABORATION BETWEEN RESEARCH INSTITUTES AND INDUSTRY: Lessons learned from the Murchison Widefield Array and applicability to the Square Kilometre Array

2013 January, Case Study (Curtin University)

Since mid-2013, when the MWA began scanning the Earth’s southern skies, the project has supported a trove of scientific achievements.

Key Areas of Science

Epoch of Reionisation

Galactic Science

Time Domain

Space Weather

Pulsars and Fast Transients

Findings worth tuning into