It's not just on the cricket fields that South Africa and Australia are arch-rivals.
   

Now there's a mighty battle raging at technological level to host the world's most powerful telescope that aims to find the answers to the burning questions of the origins of the human race and whether there is life elsewhere in the universe.
   

South Africa is ready to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) in the heart of the almost desert landscape of the Karoo in the Northern Cape province, and has already gone a long way towards the project by developing the MeerKAT (sic) system, the largest telescope yet.
   

Australia is also edging ahead to secure the bid, which is expected to be finalised in the first half of this year by a consortium of the major international science funding
agencies, in consultation with the SKA Science and Engineering Committee (SSEC).
   

The African bid, if successful, will also involve several other countries - and, it is hoped, put the continent at the forefront of research in this scientific field.
   

To this end, the Minister of Science and Technology, Naledi Pandor, has pumped millions of rands into developing young scientists who can work not just on the SKA project, but in astronomy as a whole to make South Africa a world leader.
   

"We are proud that the SKA South Africa is well positioned to play a pathfinder role for a new generation of global-science partnerships," Pandor said during a recent
graduation ceremony for astronomy students as she also lauded the progress being made with MeerKAT, South Africa's SKA precursor radio telescope.
   

She said that over 500 radio astronomers from all over the globe have already reserved space to use MeerKAT for the next few years.
   

"At about 50, 100 times greater sensitivity than any other radio telescope on Earth, the SKA will be able to probe the edges of our Universe," said Prof Justin Jonas, head of
the South African SKA project.
   

"It will help us to answer fundamental questions in astronomy, physics and cosmology, including the nature of dark energy and dark matter. It will be a powerful time machine that scientists will use to go back in time to explore the origins of the first galaxies, stars and planets. If there is life somewhere else in the Universe, the SKA will help us find it."
   

There are also huge benefits for the economy of the country that wins the SKA bid, as the construction of the telescope is expected to cost about 1.5 billion Euros, with
annual maintenance spending of up to 50 million Euros. Although there was no official comment on rumours that South Africa and Australia could co-host the SKA, unofficially leaders did not see a problem with this from a technological point of view, but expressed concerns about legal and logistical issues.