Genesis Ferrer has dreamed of working at the Arecibo Observatory ever since she first met some of her astrophysicists during a high school trip to Puerto Rico.
After hearing them use words like “radiation” and “emission,” Ferrer, 21, said she fell in love with the “whole idea” of understanding things so far. “Like many scientists in the U.S. region, Ferrer can explore astrophysics, biophysics, and his interest in school space.
Rio Pidras Campus, a fourth-year physics student at the University of Puerto Rico, recently received a fellowship from the Puerto Rican NASA Space Consortium to study emissions from red dwarf stars using a giant radio telescope in Arecibo. Due to coronavirus restrictions, Ferrer has been remotely accessing the necessary data from the Arecibo Observatory, hoping to be able to complete its investigation as soon as it all started.
Those hopes were dashed when the Arecibo Observatory collapsed on Tuesday morning. The telescope’s 900-ton receiver platform and the Gregorian dome – a tall four-story building with secondary reflections – fell on the northern part of the huge reflector dish below the main cable after the main cable. Broke overnight.
“I was very sad, very disappointed,” Ferrer told NBC News. “I worked very hard to finally accept the job at the Ci Resibo Observatory. And now that I’m accepted, I can’t work at it. I’m very sad, not only personally, but I love it very much. Seen as a tragedy for science in Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico. “
The Arecibo Observatory was the world’s largest radio telescope and a point of pride for the Puerto Ricans, whether in science or not. About 90,000 islands and tourists visit the observatory every year, which is a boon for the region.
During his nearly 57-year tenure, U.S. The observatory, funded by the Department of Defense, has been at the forefront of space research – and critical training for space science students.
In August, the observatory began collapsing after the auxiliary cable broke, damaging the telescope’s dish and the receiver platform hanging above it, according to the US National Science Foundation, the federal agency that owns the observatory. The agency, which launched its plan to cut the telescope in mid-November, said it was trying to “prevent other parts of the observatory from being damaged or damaged safely” in an effort to prevent an uncontrolled collapse.
“The NSF took a long time to do this because they have the sequence protocols they have to follow,” said Niebel Mડેndez, director of the Planetary Habitat Laboratory at the Arebibo Campus, the University of Arecibo Campus and planetary astrologer. “We thought they had an emergency plan that could speed things up.”
But the cable failed before the agency was able to save the telescope.
“Fed” dreams of doing science in Puerto Rico
Ariana Cole, a third-year physics student at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaggis campus, said she was particularly interested in pursuing a career in astrophysical particle physics or astrophysics after seeing “Theory Everything for Everything” and learning about Stephen Hawking.
“My options would have been limited if we had the Arecibo Observatory, now that it has basically disappeared, my chances of being able to live in Puerto Rico have been aded,” Colon told NBC News. “My dream was to stay here and return to my island.”
When the cables from the observatory broke for the first time in August, Cole began working with Mandez in an investigation into the Borisov comet. She started by analyzing some of the data the telescope had already captured, but eventually Colon was learning how to use it manually and capture more data for future investigation. But that never happened.
“I was very close and then everything fell apart,” he said.
Kevin Ortiz, a fourth-year physics student at the University of Puerto Rico on the Rio Piedras campus, has been investigating astronomy at the observatory for nearly three years.
“It’s a tragedy because we’re seeing our dreams fade,” said Ortiz, who was also working on a new investigation with Mendez. “I was in complete shock – the Arecibo Observatory is an engineering marvel designed to last longer.”
The “incredible” educational impact, for reconstruction
For many in Puerto Rico, the collapse of the Ci Resibo Observatory was a dark metaphor that reflects the reality of an island that has been in crisis for a decade. Puerto Ricans have been grappling with the biggest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, as well as Hurricane Maria – the U.S. in 100 years. Based catastrophic natural disaster that led to at least 2,975 deaths in 2017. Recently, the island was hit by a strong coronavirus epidemic that brought down hundreds of constructions before it hit the island. Islanders rarely remember a time when their lives were not marked by hardships.
Against this backdrop, the Ci Resibo Observatory presented a “gateway to opportunity” for its students, Mandeze said.
“Right now, Kevin applies to grade schools and is able to say, ‘I’ve done a scientific publication at the Arecibo Observatory,’ he will automatically be out because many undergraduate students have no experience working with world-class instruments.” Said. But Ferrer and Cologne, his two other students, “and many others will not get that chance” soon.
After the National Science Foundation announced its plans to abolish the observatory, more than 140 students and science professionals rallied together on social media to launch the Sere de Arecibo Observatory movement.
Puerto Ricans in STEM – Puerto Ricans’ affiliation to the island and mainland in science, technology, engineering and mathematics – joined the movement and raised awareness through the White House for a petition seeking help to collect more than 65,000 signatures in less than two weeks. Then to save the observatory # Save TheAO, #WhatAreciboMeansToMe And now #Rebuildersibobberry Hashtags, said Executive Director Raman Misla.
Now, there are groups Repeat their efforts U.S. to rebuild telescope On getting help from Congress.
“The telescope collapsed but the probe facility and visitor center are still there. With the right funding, we have a practical way to rebuild,” Ortiz said. “The educational impact of the observatory is indescribable at all levels, from professionals and college students to high school academies and primary schools visiting our center.”
Wilbert Ruperto, who helped start this Save the Arecibo Observatory The movement said on Wednesday that “New application Calls for reconstruction are being discussed by members of the scientific community. It will probably be out today or tomorrow. “
“We have shown that we have the ability to come together,” Misla said. “I believe that the scientific community and the STEM community in general, as we come together, will make a difference.”
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