Famous Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico Collapses

A 900-ton equipment platform suspended hundreds of feet above the ground fell and punched a hole in the giant radio dish below, marking a catastrophic end for the iconic observatory.

Written byAshley Yeager

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ABOVE: The Arecibo Observatory in 2014
© ISTOCK.COM, ISAACRIUZ

The Arecibo Observatory collapsed today (December 1), shattering the telescope’s 305-meter-wide radio dish and marking a cataclysmic end to the telescope’s 57-year run studying outer space, searching for alien life, and characterizing asteroids with the potential to hit Earth. No one was hurt in the incident, according to National Geographic, though astronomers around the world are mourning the telescope’s demise, the Associated Press reports.

Jonathan Friedman, a 26-year veteran of radio astronomy with the telescope, lives near the observatory in Puerto Rico and heard the rumble this morning as a cable holding a 900-ton equipment platform suspended above the 305-meter-wide radio dish snapped. The platform went into freefall and slammed into the radio dish, destroying it. Before he saw the damage, Friedman knew what had happened, and tells the AP, “I was screaming. Personally, I was out of control. . . ...

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Meet the Author

Ashley Yeager
Ashley started at The Scientist in 2018. Before joining the staff, she worked as a freelance editor and writer, a writer at the Simons Foundation, and a web producer at Science News, among other positions. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a master’s degree in science writing from MIT. Ashley edits the Scientist to Watch and Profile sections of the magazine and writes news, features, and other stories for both online and print.
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