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For five decades, Arecibo was the largest single aperture telescope in the world, used to study distant planets and find asteroids.
The huge telescope on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico – located at the Arecibo Observatory and deteriorating since August – collapsed on Tuesday, officials said, after 57 years of astronomical discoveries.
The radio telescope’s 900-tonne instrument platform, suspended by cables 137 m (450 ft) above a bowl-shaped reflector 305 meters (1,000 ft) wide, fell on Tuesday morning, the National Science Foundation (NSF) of the United States said. No injuries were reported, he added.
The instrument platform of the 305m telescope at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico fell overnight. No injuries were reported. NSF is working with stakeholders to assess the situation. Our top priority is to maintain security. NSF will release further details when confirmed. pic.twitter.com/Xjbb9hPUgD
– National Science Foundation (@NSF) December 1, 2020
The telescope, one of the largest in the world, has been used by scientists around the world for decades to study distant planets, find potentially dangerous asteroids, and look for potential signatures of extraterrestrial life.
He also appeared in two US films, GoldenEye with Pierce Brosnan as James Bond and released in 1995, and Contact, with actors Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey two years later.
The Arecibo Observatory Space Telescope, seen in a satellite image taken from Arecibo, Puerto Rico [File: Planet/Handout via Reuters]
Two cables supporting the reflector had broken since August, leaving a gash in the dish and making the site unsafe, forcing officials to close the observatory. The NSF, which helped manage the telescope, said in November that efforts to repair the structure would be too dangerous and therefore it would have to be demolished.
“NSF is saddened by this development,” the independent federal agency tweeted. “As we move forward, we will look for ways to assist the scientific community and maintain our strong relationship with the people of Puerto Rico.”
When it announced the closure last month, the NSF said that “the telescope serves as an inspiration for Puerto Ricans considering education and employment in STEM. [science, technology, engineering and mathematics]”.
In the same statement, Michael Wiltberger, head of the geospatial section of NSF, said the observatory “has helped transform our understanding of the ionosphere by showing us how density, composition and other factors interact to model this critical region in which the atmosphere earth meets space “.
NSF’s original plan was to dismantle the site with “the aim of retaining as much of the remaining infrastructure of the Arecibo Observatory as possible so that it remains available for future research and education missions.”
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