Following the Arecibo Observatory suffering a collapse back in 2020, scientists hoped that the facility will be rebuilt. But the National Science Foundation (NSF) decided that it was time to permanenty decomission it, according to The Verge.
Instead, they will be building an education center that will focus on STEM education and outreach. On the bright side, sacrificing the Arecibo Observatory will still lead to an education system dedicated to science, which is set to open its doors in 2023.
The Arecibo Observatory Collapse
The 900-ton central platform of the observatory is held up by cables, and in August 2020, one of them snapped. It didn't alert the National Science Foundation at first, but when the second one broke in November 2020, the NSF finally announced that the telescope was in a precarious position and may result in collapse, as mentioned in Britannica.
The NSF also claimed that it could not be safely repaired, so they decided to decommission the observatory to avoid accidents. On December 1, 2020, the NSF was proven to be right as the central platform eventually did collapse into the dish, as all its cables had been broken.
The breakdown of the Arecibo Observatory may have started due to the damage that the observatory sustained back in 2017 when Hurricane Maria passed by Puerto Rico. There had also been a number of earthquakes that affected the island, which caused the Arecibo Observatory to close temporarily.
Read also: Hubble Telescope Pictures: NASA Observatory Snaps Rare Galaxy Phenomenon, Iconic Eagle Nebula
An Educational Institution in Its Stead
The National Science Foundation intends to use the site and build a world-class science, technology, engineering, and math educational center. They also stated that the center would expand on existing education and outreach opportunities, all while implementing new STEM programs and initiatives, as mentioned in Space.com.
NSF's solicitation program claimed that they expect to provide $5 million within a five-year period. It may also include a five-year maintenance contract, which could be worth a million per year. Although some say that it could be enough to pay the bills, the budget will not be able to cover research.
Facts About the Arecibo Observatory
Before its tragic collapse, the Arecibo Observatory has been an instrument used by many scientists to understand the world beyond our own. Here are a few facts about it.
The instrument was built in the 1960s and had a 305-meter spherical reflector with perforated aluminum panels for focusing incoming radio waves.
It has a movable antenna structure so that scientists can track celestial objects in different regions of the sky. It was positioned 168 meters above the reflector's surface.
The observatory had a 30-meter telescope as well. It was used as a radio interferometer and a high-power transmitting facility.
In 1992, it was with the Arecibo Observatory that scientists discovered extrasolar planets around pulsar B1257+12.
It was used by American astronomers Russel Hulse and Joseph H. Taylor, Jr. in finding the first binary pulsar.
The observatory produced detailed radar maps of the surface of Mercury, and discovered that it rotated every 59 days instead of 88 days.
