SCIENTISTS from around the world gathered in Shanghai yesterday to discuss the latest developments in the Square Kilometer Array project. China is one of 10 countries involved in the construction of the SKA — a massive, multi-site radio telescope — and Shanghai is hoping to host one of the five data processing centers that will be needed to serve it. Hong Xiaoyu, head of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory, said the city applied to China’s central government last year to host the Asian center — the other four will be in Australia, South Africa, Canada and Europe — but has yet to hear back.