IBM Corp (NYSE: IBM) announced plans to collaborate with the Dutch astronomical research institute Astron to help the group create technology to peer deep into space.

The technology company will provide analog and mixed-signal custom processors for the institute's future radio astronomy project.

Increasingly, more and more companies across industries must collaborate with others in order to achieve the new level of innovation required for success, said Raj Desai, Vice President, Aerospace & Defense, IBM Technology Collaboration Solutions.

The high performance, low power usage customized chips will be used in thousands of antennas as part of Astron's project to build a new prototype radio telescope called SKADS/EMBRACE, which will be the precursor for the world's largest radio astronomy telescope, the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) radio telescope.

A large project such as SKA also requires a close collaboration with major industrial companies such as IBM and with their commitment to this project, they will contribute significantly to a successful outcome, said Dr. Marco de Vos, Astron Research and Development Director.

A team of engineers from both Astron and the IBM Technology Collaboration Solutions will work in IBM's Burlington, Vermont, USA facility on engineering, design and manufacturing of the customized processors.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

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