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UCT knowledge hub A number of formal research structures or groupings facilitate research at UCT, including faculties and departments, university research institutes, accredited research groups and national instruments such as Centres of Excellence and the Department of Science and Technology. UCT is ideally situated for various interdisciplinary research topics, drawn together into hubs with strategic objectives and a mass of researchers.
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The following are some of the most prominent interdisciplinary research hubs at UCT, some with specific research groups attached to them.
Astronomy, cosmology and gravity Research in this area spans stellar and galactic astrophysics, and extragalactic astronomy, and extends into the fundamental physics that underlies the nature of the universe. UCT also plays a leading role in the Square Kilometre Array. The Department of Astronomy – the only dedicated university-based astronomy group in South Africa – and the High Energy Physics, Cosmology and Astrophysics Theory Group are two groups that undertake this research. UCT’s proximity to areas under dark skies without light pollution makes it ideal for astronomical studies.