Only in the strange world of astronomy does it make sense to travel halfway around the world to an observatory at the edge of the Kalahari Desert to get a better look at ourselves. But that makes perfect sense to UW-Madison astronomer Ken Nordsieck. In fact, his bags are packed. Nordsieck is part of a group of UW-Madison astronomers who will be traveling to South Africa next month to help complete and christen the largest optical telescope in the Southern Hemisphere. When it is done, the telescope, the $18-million South African Large Telescope, or SALT, will allow astronomers to peer at the most distant objects ever observed, including remnants of the Big Bang itself.
Office of Strategic Communication