The scientists (and science) behind South Africa’s first quantum satellite link with China

Name: The scientists (and science) behind South Africa’s first quantum satellite link with China
Start: 2025-10-14T18:30:00+02:00
End: 2025-10-14T19:30:00+02:00
Location: Stellenbosch Conservatorium, Endler

Schedule

Tue Oct 14 2025 at 06:30 pm to 07:30 pm

UTC+02:00

Location

Stellenbosch Conservatorium, Endler | Stellenbosch, WC

South Africa and China have successfully established the world’s longest intercontinental ultra-secure quantum satellite link, spanning 12,900 km. Using the Chinese quantum microsatellite Jinan-1, launched into low Earth orbit, this milestone marks the first-ever quantum satellite communication link established in the Southern Hemisphere. Join us for a Science Cafe Stellenbosch at the Toyota Woordfees and meet the South African scientists who made it happen: Dr Yaseera Ismail, an experimental physicist in Stellenbosch University's Department of Physics, and Prof. Francesco Petruccione, director of the National Institute for Theoretical and Computational Sciences (NITheCS), and professor of quantum computing in Stellenbosch University's School for Data Science.
Venue: Conservatorium amphitheater, Victoria Street, Stellenbosch