WHAT’S NEXT FOR ARECIBO?

After almost 60 years, it looks like time to say goodbye to the iconic Arecibo telescope. The dish, which reclined in a sinkhole on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico, was just too badly damaged when its support cables snapped following earthquakes and hurricanes. If it cannot be repaired, then what does the future hold for the observatory? “The damage to the telescope cannot be repaired,” says Rob Margetta of the National Science Foundation (NSF), the body that administers the telescope in partnership with the University of Central Florida. “It suffered extensive damage due to the 2020 collapse. The telescope’s instrument platform was also a complete loss, and its support towers were damaged.” That statement seems pretty final, but there are other instruments at Arecibo that haven’t been damaged. Plans for a replacement are at an early stage, and there are other telescopes around the world that can carry on its pioneering work.

“Arecibo Observatory has other facilities that the NSF seeks to bring back online as soon as possible,” says