by Bob Walsh
The
massive radio telescope in Puerto Rico, made famous by the James Bond
film Goldeneye, collapsed into a heap of rubble just before 8 a.m. on
Tuesday
The 57-year old
structure was damaged back in August when a cable broke, leaving a major
owie across the 1,000 foot dish. It also damaged the receiver that is
suspended above the dish. Then in November a main suspension cable
broke and things went downhill from there. (Deferred maintenance is a
bitch.) The telescope is now considered to be unrepairable.
The LIDAR facility and a 12 meter telescope on sight are still fully functional so the site will not be shut down.
The thing was originally built with Defense Department money and has also been used to track asteroids.
The National Science Foundation owns the facility. It is operated by the University of Central Florida.
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