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hatrack

(59,439 posts)
Mon Nov 16, 2020, 10:10 AM Nov 2020

Arecibo Observatory In Danger Of Collapse; Cable Failures Plus Failure To Provide Emergency Funding

EDIT

As someone who depends on Arecibo for my science, I’m frightened. It’s a very worrisome situation right now. There’s a possibility of cascading, catastrophic failure,” said astronomer Scott Ransom with the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves, a collaboration of scientists in the U.S. and Canada. Last week, one of the telescope’s main steel cables that was capable of sustaining 1.2 million pounds (544,000 kilograms) snapped under only 624,000 pounds (283,000 kilograms). That failure further mangled the reflector dish after an auxiliary cable broke in August, tearing a 100-foot hole and damaging the dome above it. Officials said they were surprised because they had evaluated the structure in August and believed it could handle the shift in weight based on previous inspections.

It’s a blow for the telescope that more than 250 scientists around the world were using. The facility is also one of Puerto Rico’s main tourist attractions, drawing some 90,000 visitors a year. Research has been suspended since August, including a project aiding scientists in their search for nearby galaxies. The telescope was built in the 1960s and financed by the Defense Department amid a push to develop anti-ballistic missile defenses. It’s endured over a half-century of disasters, including hurricanes and earthquakes. Repairs from Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, were still underway when the first cable snapped.

Some new cables are scheduled to arrive next month, but officials said funding for repairs has not been worked out with federal agencies. Scientists warn that time is running out. Only a handful of cables now support the 900-ton platform. “Each of the structure’s remaining cables is now supporting more weight than before, increasing the likelihood of another cable failure, which would likely result in the collapse of the entire structure,” the University of Central Florida, which manages the facility, said in a statement Friday.

University officials say crews have already noticed wire breaks on two of the remaining main cables. They warn that employees and contractors are at risk despite relying heavily on drones and remote cameras to assess the damage. The observatory estimates the damage at more than $12 million and is seeking money from the National Science Foundation, an independent federal agency that owns the observatory.

EDIT

https://apnews.com/article/puerto-rico-planets-jodie-foster-053fbf8834e50d5e3ad88443a3fde550

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Arecibo Observatory In Danger Of Collapse; Cable Failures Plus Failure To Provide Emergency Funding (Original Post) hatrack Nov 2020 OP
Abysmal. hlthe2b Nov 2020 #1
It hasn't been operating since the first cable broke in August - funding is precarious. Klaralven Nov 2020 #2
Several hurricanes also added insult to injury to it BumRushDaShow Nov 2020 #3
K&Fuckin'R Guy Whitey Corngood Nov 2020 #4
The wall is more important. dalton99a Nov 2020 #5
Is the lack of funding related to Trump's hostility procon Nov 2020 #6
K&R for visibility. crickets Nov 2020 #7

hlthe2b

(101,705 posts)
1. Abysmal.
Mon Nov 16, 2020, 10:16 AM
Nov 2020

Why the treatment of PR by Trump and his ilk (as well as some other administrations) was not a bigger issue in Fl burns me up. Let's see, what is the major difference between Cuban and PR populations? Hmmm.

 

Klaralven

(7,510 posts)
2. It hasn't been operating since the first cable broke in August - funding is precarious.
Mon Nov 16, 2020, 10:59 AM
Nov 2020
Arecibo radio telescope goes dark after snapped cable shreds dish

The iconic Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico was damaged early on 10 August when a snapped steel cable smashed into one of its antennas and tore a 30-meter gash in its 307-meter-wide dish. Observations have been halted for at least 2 weeks while investigations are carried out, say Ramon Lugo, director of the Florida Space Institute at the University of Central Florida (UCF), which manages the observatory for the National Science Foundation (NSF). “My primary focus right now is the safety of people and the facility,” he says. The accident happened at 2:45 a.m., he says, but if it had been during the day when more staff were on site, there could have been injuries.

For nearly 60 years Arecibo has been a mainstay of radio astronomy, atmospheric research, and planetary science. For decades, it was the main telescope used in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Its dramatic appearance has won it supporting roles in several films. Its fixed dish, built into a natural depression in the surrounding hills, was the largest single dish in the world until 2016, when it was overtaken by China’s Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). Arecibo can only look straight up, but some steering is possible by moving the receivers, or antennas, around a platform suspended by cables high above the dish.

The cable that broke this week was not one of the main support cables but one of several auxiliary ones added in the 1990s to stabilize the platform when a large new antenna, known as the Gregorian dome, was added. The cable failed where it was attached to the platform. Because it contained a lot of stored energy from tension, it flailed around wildly, damaging the Gregorian dome and the main reflector of the dish, Lugo says. The platform itself appears to be twisted, he adds.

...

Arecibo’s status has been precarious in recent years. Its scientific importance has diminished as newer facilities have come online, and NSF has sought to divert its funding to new projects. In 2018, UCF took over management of the facility in a deal that allowed NSF to reduce its investment. Nevertheless, this new blow, on top of Hurricane Maria, will likely reopen the debate over Arecibo’s future. “There are some segments of the population who will start that conversation,” Lugo says. “We have to stay focused on the end goal of returning to full capability.”

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/08/arecibo-radio-telescope-goes-dark-after-snapped-cable-shreds-dish

At this point, it probably costs more to repair, maintain and operate than is worth it. Besides, there is a new, better, bigger one in China.

World’s largest radio telescope will search for dark matter, listen for aliens

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/09/world-s-largest-radio-telescope-will-search-dark-matter-listen-aliens

BumRushDaShow

(127,271 posts)
3. Several hurricanes also added insult to injury to it
Mon Nov 16, 2020, 11:14 AM
Nov 2020

the worst being CAT5 Maria -



Maria also did this to the San Juan Doppler radar apparatus (since repaired after a year) -

(before and after Maria hit the island)

procon

(15,805 posts)
6. Is the lack of funding related to Trump's hostility
Mon Nov 16, 2020, 11:29 AM
Nov 2020

toward Puerto Rico? He would do something like that to retaliate and get his petty revenge even though it's the scientific community that will pay the highest price.

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