[ad_1]
The main collection dish is one of the largest satellite dish radio telescopes in the world. The reflective dish is 1,000 feet in diameter, 167 feet deep, and covers an area of approximately 20 acres. Photo: UCF
A second cable broke at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, causing more damage to the reflective dish below. The asteroid hunting telescope has been out of service since August.
The second cable broke on Friday, causing further damage to the antenna and other support cables.
Engineers are still investigating the first crash, where a main cable slipped from its outlet in August, sending a support structure crashing into the massive dish below.
The second cable that failed was attached to the same support structure – which led observatory officials to believe that an increase in stress on the first cable led to the second snap.
“This is certainly not what we wanted to see, but the important thing is that no one gets hurt,” said Francisco Cordova, director of the observatory. “We have reflected on our assessment and prioritized safety in planning the repairs that were to begin on Tuesday. Now this. There is a lot of uncertainty until we can stabilize the structure. He has our full attention. We are assessing the situation with our experts and hope to have more to share soon. “
The team will now focus on relieving tension in existing cables and installing temporary supports. The University of Central Florida, which partly operates the observatory, has requested additional funding from the National Science Foundation to repair damage from the first crash.
It’s unclear how much extra money or time it will take to bring the observatory back online.
The Arecibo Observatory is home to one of the most powerful telescopes on the planet, conducting research in atmospheric sciences, planetary sciences, radio astronomy and radar astronomy.
UCF manages the facility under a cooperation agreement with Universidad Ana G. Méndez and Yang Enterprises Inc. for the NSF.
[ad_2]
Source link