![]() ![]() In the past, the scientific community has stepped up to defend Arecibo. However, the National Science Foundation has been talking about reducing Arecibo’s resources in favor of building new facilities. It also received a $19 million NASA grant last year. So we’re a pretty resilient bunch down here and we’re going to figure out a way to continue to move forward, doing exciting science for the world.” Arecibo’s futureĪrecibo received a $12.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation in 2018, with support from Congress. “We’ve overcome a lot in our 50-year history, from Hurricane Maria to very recent rash of earthquakes to now this. “We’ll find a way to repair this particular issue and continue to move forward,” Arecibo Observatory Director Francisco Cordova told CBS News. The cable had been under a great deal of tension, so it had stored energy that caused it to make wild movements which caused further damage. The cause of the cable’s slip is not known. Accordingly, the facility has been shut down until repairs can be completed. ![]() No one was hurt in the event, and the leadership of the facility has announced that human safety continues to be a high priority. Two hundred and fifty of the reflector panels were damaged, as were several supporting cables. As Hurricane Maria approached Puerto Rico in late. One of the chains snapped last month, and the telescope’s reflector dish sustained a 100-foot-long gash. Arecibo Observatory's 1,000-foot telescope was damaged in last year's storm, and the recovery money is only just beginning to flow in. The damageĪrecibo’s telescope is held by chains. It was with the help of Arecibo’s telescope that the ice caps of mercury were discovered, the surface of Venus was mapped, and the first binary pulsar was discovered. It’s an important element of defense against objects in space.Īrecibo is also an important player in research. The observatory has done this work for more than half a century. It also means that Arecibo is able to track asteroids and make sure they are not heading toward a collision with the earth. This means that Arecibo can send out signals in case anyone out in the universe is listening, which it does. It is able to transmit radio waves as well. The radio telescope at Arecibo does not just observe, as most telescopes do. Federal funding for the facility has been cut severely since then, and now a cable holding up the telescope has snapped, damaging the telescope and forcing Arecibo to close. Arecibo Observatory, home of the second largest radio telescope in the world, was badly damaged in 2017 when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. 6, though the Arecibo Observatory made it through that storm relatively unscathed.Įmail Hanneke Weitering at or follow her. Hurricane Irma also hit the island on Sept. 18) as the observatory was preparing for the second major hurricane to hit Puerto Rico this month. 27), Arecibo representatives said on Twitter Monday (Sept. The visitor center is officially closed through Wednesday (Sept. Getting to the observatory will be a challenge, though, as roads are covered in debris and are inaccessible at this time, USRA officials said.īefore the hurricane, Arecibo officials tweeted that the observatory would reopen to staff today, though it seems unlikely that anyone who didn't take shelter at the observatory will be able to report for work. 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. Vazquez also detailed some of the damage done to the iconic telescope. The telescope was damaged by Hurricane Maria in 2017 and was affected by earthquakes in 20. National Geographic's Nadia Drake reports that Pennsylvania State University professor Jim Breakall spoke with the telescope operator, who was identified as Ángel Vazquez, and said staff members and their families were safe after sheltering at the facility. ![]() One telescope operator at Arecibo managed to contact USRA officials Thursday (Sept. But now with the damage from Hurricane Maria, it might be shut down. While the overall structure of the telescope is still standing, it sustained some pretty serious damage from Hurricane Maria, according to an update from the Universities Space Research Organization (USRA), which helps to operate the Arecibo Observatory. This Puerto Rico-based radio telescope was already in an uncertain level of funding. The Arecibo Observatory houses the world's second-largest radio telescope. ![]() Without power, phones or internet service, the Arecibo Observatory has been offline since the storm hit. 20) and left widespread destruction in its wake. The storm hit the island as a Category 4 hurricane Wednesday (Sept. Puerto Rico's iconic Arecibo Observatory has sustained some significant damage from Hurricane Maria, officials reported today (Sept. After decades of aiding astronomical discoveries, the 305-meter telescope at Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico will be decommissioned after sustaining damage caused by two falling cables. ![]()
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