In South Africa’s vast semi-arid Karoo region, harsh living conditions have created a rare meeting point between astronomy, conservation and ancient culture. The region’s sparse population and extremely low light pollution make it ideal for stargazing – and for hosting the Square Kilometer Array (SKA), the world’s largest radio telescope project, designed to detect signals from the early universe. Around the SKA site, 135,000 hectares were declared the Meerkat National Park. It’s enabling scientists and conservationists to restore a fragile ecosystem damaged by centuries of farming and overgrazing. At the same time, the SKA is boosting local education and jobs – and helping to reconnect the indigenous community with their ancestral traditions under the stars.