The Governor of Puerto Rico, Wanda Vázquez, today signed Executive Order 2020-96 to establish the reconstruction of the Arecibo Observatory radio telescope as public policy.
This, so that “it resurfaces as a world-class educational center”.
The Executive Order establishes an allocation of $ 8 million for reconstruction efforts, including restoration of environmental damage through removal and safe disposal of the contaminated material, which has already begun under the supervision of the National Science Foundation.
In a press conference, the governor assured that this day is a “great opportunity” to return the scientific and tourist attraction to what it was.
“We couldn’t leave without putting our two cents into science,” continued the first director.
On December 1, the last cables holding the so-called Gregorian Dome, a platform that weighed about 900 tons and hit the 305-meter-diameter plate, failed, causing greater damage.
While a main cable broke at the Arecibo Observatory on Friday, November 6, around 7:39 AM, it caused damage to the plant’s main dish.
Unlike the auxiliary cable that failed in the same installation on August 10, this main cable did not come out of its outlet, but broke and fell on the reflector dish below, causing additional damage to that dish and other nearby cables. was reported on Sunday, November 8.
On Nov. 19, the United States National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that it was going to disassemble the dish, considering it not feasible to repair it safely.
The Arecibo Observatory was established in 1963, but had been modernized and expanded several times so that it did not lose its validity in the study.