Preliminary data from the $51 million Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) radio telescope in Western Australia's outback is already on a par with the best results ever achieved, Special Minister of State Gary Gray says.

The low-frequency radio telescope at the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory, which is about 315km northeast of Geraldton, was officially launched on Friday.

It is one of three precursors to the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project, which will be the largest and most capable radio telescope ever made.

The SKA will provide scientists with the farthest peek into the universe and therefore, time.

That $2 billion project will comprise 3000 dishes spanning South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and will be funded by a consortium of 20 nations.

Mr Gray said the MWA was the only precursor to the SKA to focus on low-frequency radio waves that would enable scientists to understand for the first time how the universe had evolved since the big bang 13.7 billion years ago.

It will also help to identify the trajectory of solar storms, quadrupling the warning period currently provided by near-earth satellites.

The impressive early data already collected from the MWA used only a fraction of its capability, Mr Gray said.

"This is cutting edge technology - it will enable us to look back and look forward," he said.

"It is extraordinary that we are today looking at gathering information sent more than 13 billion years ago.

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Another radio-telescope launched in WA