Arecibo gets $12.3 million NSF grant
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The National Science Foundation has awarded the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rica a $12.3 million grant to pay for needed repairs and upgrades following the hurricane damage from 2017.
The money will pay for the following work:
- Repairing one of the suspension cables holding the primary telescope platform, ensuring long-term structural integrity of one of the main structural elements of the telescope.
- Recalibrating the primary reflector, which will restore the observatory’s sensitivity at higher frequencies.
- Aligning the Gregorian Reflector, improving current calibration and pointing.
- Installing a new control system for S band radar, which is part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum.
- Replacing the modulator on the 430 MHz transmitter, increasing consistency of power output and data quality.
- Improving the telescope’s pointing controls and data tracking systems.
Most of this looks to be very basic maintenance, which suggests the telescope is still very starved for funds.
For many reasons, mostly political but partly ethical, I do not use Google, Facebook, Twitter. They practice corrupt business policies, while targeting conservative websites for censoring, facts repeatedly confirmed by news stories and by my sense that Facebook has taken action to prevent my readers from recommending Behind the Black to their friends.
Thus, I must have your direct support to keep this webpage alive. Not only does the money pay the bills, it gives me the freedom to speak honestly about science and culture, instead of being forced to write it as others demand.
Please consider donating by giving either a one-time contribution or a regular subscription, as outlined in the tip jar below.
Regular readers can support Behind The Black with a contribution via paypal:
If Paypal doesn't work for you, you can support Behind The Black directly by sending your donation by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman, to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage. And if you buy the books through the ebookit links, I get a larger cut and I get it sooner.
The National Science Foundation has awarded the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rica a $12.3 million grant to pay for needed repairs and upgrades following the hurricane damage from 2017.
The money will pay for the following work:
- Repairing one of the suspension cables holding the primary telescope platform, ensuring long-term structural integrity of one of the main structural elements of the telescope.
- Recalibrating the primary reflector, which will restore the observatory’s sensitivity at higher frequencies.
- Aligning the Gregorian Reflector, improving current calibration and pointing.
- Installing a new control system for S band radar, which is part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum.
- Replacing the modulator on the 430 MHz transmitter, increasing consistency of power output and data quality.
- Improving the telescope’s pointing controls and data tracking systems.
Most of this looks to be very basic maintenance, which suggests the telescope is still very starved for funds.
Sad, but the NSF needs the money to study Climate Change ™, not outer space.