The iconic Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico was damage last week when a large cable television fell onto the wireless telescope ’s primary reflector cup of tea . We ’re now get a line more about this unfortunate incident , including how long it might take until the beleaguered observatory is back online .
During the other forenoon of Monday August 10 , a thick ancillary cable used to corroborate a metallic element platformdropped onto the independent reflector dish , producing a 100 - foot - long gash . The golf ball - like Gregorian Dome was also damaged , as was a political platform used to reach the noggin , which houses a multi - beam receiver . No one was smart during the incident , but scientific employment at Puerto Rico ’s famous Arecibo Observatory is now on hold , pending mending .
During a virtual press conference moderate on August 14 , Francisco Córdova , the theatre director of the Arecibo Observatory , described it as an “ unprecedented outcome , ” enjoin the cables , which were installed around 20 eld ago , were hypothecate to last for another 15 to 20 year . Importantly , however , the cable did not crack . Rather , the 3 - inch thick cable television slipped out from a socket located on one of the lookout ’s three reinforcement tower , he said .
Viewed from space, the damage at the Arecibo Observatory doesn’t seem so bad.Image: Planet Labs
The accurate cause of the nonstarter is still strange . Ray Lugo , director of the Florida Space Institute , is now oversee the investigation , which is still in its other degree , as he explained during the press conference . Lugo refused to “ reflect about a timeframe ” for the repairs , enounce the probe is the current focussing , as is the need to protect mass working at the facility . Only until a reason for the loser is set can a timeframe for repairs be established , he said .
Lindley Johnson , director of NASA ’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office , was more free-spoken during an August 17 coming together of NASA ’s Planetary Science Advisory Committee , saying Arecibo will plausibly be out of commission for “ several months , ” as SpaceNewsreports .
The Arecibo Observatory is primarily funded by the National Science Foundation ( NSF ) , but NASA also contributes to the lookout station , which it uses to track and meditate near - Earth asteroids .
Damage at the observatory’s main collecting dish.Image: UCF Today
“ impairment to Arecibo is still being assess by the Observatory direction at the University of Central Florida , after which the NSF will consult with stakeholders , let in NASA , to determine how to proceed , ” explained a NASA voice in an e-mail .
Over 655 foot of cable television ( 200 measure ) fall onto the dish , and give that the cable weighs 66 Syrian pound ( 30 kilogram ) per time , that ’s “ several tons of material break apart down onto the dish , ” Johnson sound out . Radar equipment used by NASA was not damage , he added .
Córdova said 250 basal reflecting telescope panels were damage by the falling cable , as were several support cables underneath the primary peach . The “ priority is not replacement , ” he said , give the looker is fit with 40,000 panel . This is “ not a vast deal , ” as the “ primary reflector is in good shape , ” he said . More complicated right now is have sex if the platform has retained the structural integrity require to continue mental process and “ whether it ’s safe for the team to be up there , ” Córdova said . gratefully , he does n’t expect to chance scathe inside the Gregorian Dome , include to its receiver and transmitter .
The police detective do not yet fuck if Hurricane Maria , which ravage the island three age ago , had anything to do with the unsuccessful person . A form of astronomical work is now on clench , as is an investigation into gravitative wave and NASA’splanetary defense team projectto cartroad near - Earth asteroids , explained Córdova .
https://gizmodo.com/six-months-after-hurricane-maria-puerto-ricos-famous-t-1823936036
The iconic observatory , in plus to coping with on-going financial uncertainty , see some damage when Hurricane Maria ripped through in 2017 . For the team at Arecibo , this latest setback is just “ another extrusion in the road , ” said Córdova , to which he added : “ We ’re a clean pretty resilient bunch , and we proved that after Maria . ”
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