In this post yesterday you might have seen our Compact Array telescope in NSW getting its groove on for the launch of Daft Punk’s latest album.

As you can tell, it’s a pretty high-tech setup.

The YouTube video in the post said ‘satellite dish’, but the Compact Array is actually a radio telescope, for doing astronomy.

There’s not just one dish, there’s six of them. They usually work together, as one telescope. And they can be moved around into different arrangements on the ground, like this —

The dishes are so sensitive that a mobile phone signal coming from Pluto would be really strong for them. When the scientists at the observatory want to heat their dinners, they can’t use a microwave oven if the telescope is observing at certain frequencies — any microwaves leaking out of the oven swamp the signals from the cosmos.

The Compact Array turns 25 this year. Come and party with us!

Great technology, great engineers and great scientists have made the Compact Array one of the world’s leading radio telescopes.

And it hasn’t stood still. We’ve upgraded it over the years with new panels, new software, new receiving gear — everything. It’s now better than ever.

Astronomers have to fight to use it. For every six-month observing period, about 600 people (from almost 30 countries) apply to use the telescope. There isn’t enough time for all of them to have a go, so competition is fierce.

That’s despite the telescope working around the clock, seven days a week.

Here are some of the weird and wonderful bits of the Universe the Compact Array has looked at.