Drone video shows dramatic moment of Arecibo observatory collapse

A video of the recent Arecibo observatory collapse, taken from two different angles, shows the dramatic moment when a main cable broke, causing the 900 ton instrument platform to fall onto the large antenna radio located below.

The first of the two videos was taken from the control room of the Arecibo Observatory, where radio astronomers normally do their job. The camera was recently installed there to capture a collapse if it did happen, Ashley Zauderer, director of the Arecibo Observatory program at the National Science Foundation, told reporters.

The video player is off by default, so make sure you click on the speaker icon to turn sounds on.

As the video shows, the platform did not fall directly. It was more of a rocking action, as a main cable broke from one of the three support towers. The video also shows the tops of the towers breaking, some of which are over 60 feet long, according to John Abruzzo, managing director of Thornton Tomasetti, an engineering firm brought in to assess the situation following the recent failure of two. cables to the famous facility.

The collapse involved “very violent and unforeseen behavior,” Zauderer said.

The second video is just as remarkable, since it was captured by an aerial drone. As it turns out, the drone was being used to inspect the top of Tower 4 when one of the three remaining main cables broke. Watching the video, you can see three cables parallel to each other. A fourth cable should have been there, but it failed earlier this month (you can actually see the frayed remains of the cable at the top). Each cable consists of 170 wires, Abruzzo said. The middle of the three remaining cables is the one that failed, triggering a reaction that caused the entire structure to collapse. A fourth cable located above the trio serves as a support for the gateway and is not a main cable.

Incredibly, the drone operator was able to turn the camera to capture an aerial view of the carnage below, including the fallen platform, azimuth arm, Gregorian dome, cables, and walkway. In the distance, the top of Tower 12 can be seen rolling down the hill to the left of the operations building.

No one was hurt during this Catastrophic failure, the exact cause of which is still being determined. Zauderer said all hazardous debris was in previously designated restricted areas.

On a positive note, the nearby visitor center has not suffered any serious damage. From there, the priority remains safety, mitigating environmental concerns and finding ways to support facility staff and the people of Puerto Rico, Zauderer said. Built in 1963, the radio antenna was recently planned for demolitionbecause the repairs were deemed too dangerous.