[ad_1]
- Paul Rincon
- BBC News Science Editor
Image source, University of Central Florida
The Arecibo radio telescope has been instrumental in several astronomical discoveries over six decades.
The iconic Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico is due to be dismantled due to safety concerns found in its facility, authorities said.
A review of the 305 m diameter observatory showed that a risk of collapse catastrophic, as there is damage to its support system.
It was concluded that the huge structure it cannot be repaired without posing a risk danger to life for construction workers.
The telescope was a fundamental scientific resource for astronomers for nearly 60 years.
Sethuraman Panchanathan, director of the US National Science Foundation (NSF) which funds the telescope, said in a statement: “The NSF prioritizes the safety of workers, Arecibo Observatory personnel and visitors, which makes it necessary, too if unfortunate, this decision “.
The telescope consists of a 305 meter diameter parabolic antenna with a 900 ton instrument platform suspended 137 meters high. The platform is supported by cables connected to three towers.
Image source, Reuters
Several studies have found hard-to-repair damage to the telescope structure.
Engineers have been examining the facility since August when one of its support cables broke.
The University of Central Florida, which manages the facility, had come up with a solution to stabilize the facility. But on November 6th another cable broke.
Based on the stresses acting on the second broken cable, the engineers concluded that the remaining cables were likely weaker than previously thought.
NSF carried out multiple evaluations of independent engineering companies and concluded that the telescope structure was “in danger of catastrophic failure” and that the cables may not be able to withstand the loads for which they were designed.
Also, various reviews have indicated this any attempt at repair could put workers in danger of death.
“Until these assessments came, our question was not whether the observatory should be repaired, but how. But in the end, a weighting of the data showed that we could not do it safely. And this is a line that does not. we can cross, “he said. Ralph Gaume, director of the division of astronomical sciences at NSF.
Image source, EPA
The radio telescope has a 900-ton instrument platform suspended 137 meters high.
The foundation will now focus on the dismantling of the giant structure, which is surrounded by vegetation in the western half of the island.
A historical telescope
The Arecibo radio telescope was built in the early 1960s with the intent of studying the ionized upper part of the earth’s atmosphere, the ionosphere.
But it was soon also used as a multipurpose radio observatory.
Radio astronomy is a field within the broader discipline that observes objects in the universe by studying them through radio frequencies. Various cosmic phenomena, such as pulsar (rotating magnetized stars), show emissions at radio wavelengths.
Through this observatory it was obtained the first solid proof of a type of object known as neutron star.
It was also used to identify the first example of a binary pulsar (two magnetized neutron stars orbiting a common center of mass), which earned its discoverers the Nobel Prize in Physics.
Image source, Nick Leyva / NSF
The beam steering mechanism above the telescope focuses the incoming radio waves.
The telescope also helped to accomplish the first definitive surveythe of andxoplanetas, planetary bodies orbiting other stars, in 1992.
It has also been used to listen for signals of intelligent life in other parts of the cosmos and to track asteroids near Earth.
Over the years the main dish appeared in the movies, included Golden eye, the James Bond film starring Pierce Brosnan in 1995, as well as the science fiction drama “Contact” (Contact, 1997), with Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey.
Democratic Congressman Eddie Bernice Johnson and Republican Congressman Frank Lucas, respectively chairman and senior member of the US House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, said they were “saddened by the loss.” . of this laboratory. “
“Everyone involved in this facility should be proud of what they have achieved. Arecibo will be remembered for its illustrious scientific heritage“.
You can now receive notifications from BBC Mundo. Download the new version of our app and activate it to not miss our best content.
Source link
