The Arecibo Observatory telescope collapsed Tuesday morning weeks after it was set for demolition. The telescope sustained significant damage after an auxiliary cable slipped from its socket and left a gash in the dish weeks prior. (Image credit: NSF)
The iconic Arecibo Observatory telescope recently met a gruesome end. The telescope, located in Puerto Rico, collapsed unexpectedly this past Tuesday (Dec. 1). The National Science Foundation (NSF) confirmed that a 900-ton platform of girders and radio receivers suspended from mountaintop towers crashed into the dish in the valley below. And in a strangely ironic twist, the collapse comes two weeks after the NSF said the telescope would have to be demolished due to a loose auxiliary cable. It's a huge loss, but thankfully, no one was hurt during the collapse.
Here is the real collapse:
So, what caused the damage? Officials aren't exactly sure, but chances are it was a long time coming. NSF said the platform's fall was ongoing. They report that all three of the telescope's support towers broke. "As the 900-ton instrument platform fell, the telescope's support cables also dropped," they said in a statement. "Preliminary assessments indicate the observatory's learning center sustained significant damage from falling cables."
Though the telescope has found fame due to its appearances in movies like Goldeneye and Contact, it played an important role in radio astronomy. Built in the early 1960s, the intent behind the telescope was to study the Earth's ionosphere. Soon, it was used as an all-purpose radio observatory to study the radio frequencies of objects in the universe. Over the years, the telescope has been used to make several discoveries, including the first solid evidence of a neutron star, the first example of a binary pulsar, and the detection of exoplanets or planetary bodies that orbit other stars.
It was also featured in the video game from 2013 called "Battlefield 4," where players could actually make the telescope collapse, changing the map for players. It's fairly close to the actual collapse! See here: https://youtu.be/PMdnPIURYog?t=3
In recent years it's been used to detect asteroids swinging close to Earth, determining whether it could pose a threat to the planet and determine its potential impact. But the telescope is best known for its Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) message directed at the globular cluster M13 in 1974. A broadcast was sent via telescope in search of signals from intelligent life in outer space.
The Arecibo Observatory telescope had an exciting lifespan. It made important discoveries, aided in one of science's greatest questions, and even had a brush with fame on occasion. It's a devastating blow for scientists and for those hoping to hear back from those extraterrestrials.
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