Sigh.
Arecibo radio telescope, an icon of astronomy, is lost
Following engineering assessments concluding damage to Arecibo Observatory cannot be addressed without endangering the lives and safety of crew and staff, NSF plans to decommission the 305-meter telescope: https://t.co/En0S7OOhY4 pic.twitter.com/bB70XNud0v
— National Science Foundation (@NSF) November 19, 2020
It’s 57 years old. Which is probably a good long run for a radio telescope, but it’s still sad to see it go.
That said, this here *could* be an opportunity, not just another in 2020’s seemingly unending stream of fails and disasters. Build another radio telescope. A bigger, better, more modern one. Of course, you need to find just the right place for such a thing. A place with consistent weather, proper dish-like geography, minimal radio noise. Now I wonder where we could find a place like that:
