11/13/2023 0 Comments Next generation arecibo telescope![]() ![]() Two cable breaks, one in August 2020 and a second in November 2020, threatened the structural integrity of the support structure for the suspended platform and damaged the dish. The telescope was damaged by Hurricane Maria in 2017 and was affected by earthquakes in 20. The NSF reduced its funding commitment to the observatory from 2006, leading academics to push for additional funding support to continue its programs. The telescope was named an IEEE Milestone in 2001. It has been listed on the US National Register of Historic Places since 2008. It is one of the 116 pictures included in the Voyager Golden Record. The telescope's unique and futuristic design led to several appearances in film, gaming and television productions, such as for the climactic fight scene in the James Bond film GoldenEye (1995). In 2018, a consortium led by the University of Central Florida assumed operation of the facility. The observatory, funded primarily by the National Science Foundation (NSF) with partial support from NASA, was managed by Cornell University from its completion in 1963 until 2011, after which it was transferred to a partnership led by SRI International. NASA also used the telescope for near-Earth object detection programs. Scientists wanting to use the observatory submitted proposals that were evaluated by independent scientific referees. The Arecibo Telescope was primarily used for research in radio astronomy, atmospheric science, and radar astronomy, as well as for programs that search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). Completed in November 1963, the Arecibo Telescope was the world's largest single-aperture telescope for 53 years, until it was surpassed in July 2016 by the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) in Guizhou, China. A cable-mount steerable receiver and several radar transmitters for emitting signals were mounted 150 m (492 ft) above the dish. When America sets its mind to do something, there is nothing that can stop us.The Arecibo Telescope was a 305 m (1,000 ft) spherical reflector radio telescope built into a natural sinkhole at the Arecibo Observatory located near Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Perhaps before we rush to judgment we should take another minute and look to see if we can save this telescope, after all over the last fifty plus years, it is given us so much from in the area of scientific discovery and communications, we think we owe it to both the next generation of scientific minds and the residents of the island of Puerto Rico to give it a real concerted effort to save Arecibo. However, we are a country that has put a man on the moon, developed zero emission vehicles, put supercomputers in our hands and worked with the private sector to develop a COVID-19 vaccine in record time. While we understand that the failure of the support cables has brought to light the reality that this institution needs major repairs with no guarantee that it can be permanently stabilized. The Arecibo’s visitor center opened in 1997 is a regular field trip destination for the island's students and a source of employment for many local residents. Arecibo Is both a local icon and a major international scientific institution in an area which in the last few years has been devastated by hurricanes, earthquakes and a pandemic. Until recently, Arecibo was the largest single-dish radio telescope in the world. Chairwoman Maritza Davila of the Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force today expressed a desire for the incoming Biden administration to take a second look at a plan by the US National Science Foundation to begin decommissioning the Arecibo Observatory.
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