Introductory evaluation of Software Defined Networking for the MeerKAT data distribution network

In the sparsely populated regions of the Northern Cape, the MeerKAT radio telescope is near completion and already doing early science. This state of the art telescope with its 64 steerable dishes places a high demand on computational capability and requires a performant data fabric. In this work, we introduce the MeerKAT data network and provide some essential detail into the workings of the telescope. We describe how IP multicast is a necessary enabler for this network. This introduction to the data network is needed to lay the foundation for the discussion into the use of Software-Defined Networking (SDN) technologies to improve the manageability of the network, better utilisation and enable future growth.