Photo – Page 26 – National Radio Astronomy Observatory

Students Use the 40-foot

The 40-foot telescope in Green Bank, West Virginia is used as an educational instrument.

Sunrise strikes a VLBA, 25m telescope

The Sun rises over a 25-meter dish antenna of the Very Long Baseline Array, our collection of ten identical radio dish antennas working together as one telescope.

The VLBA antennas are placed across the Northern Hemisphere from Hawai’i to St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and together they form a dedicated array 5,351 miles across.

VLBA Pie Town antenna surrounded by snow-covered landscape

The Pie Town, New Mexico antenna is one of ten identical antennas, which are located throughout the northern hemisphere, that are part of the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA). Each of the VLBA’s radio telescopes stand at approximately 25 meters high and are spread out over 5,351-mile long baseline.

VLBA antenna in Owens Valley, California

In northern California sits one of the identical ten antennas of the Very Long Baseline Array. Data from each of the 25-meter radio telescopes are shipped to the Array Operations Center in Socorro, New Mexico to be digitally combined. The ten antennas are spread over a 5,351-mile long baseline that runs from Hawai’i to St. Croix.

VLBA Antenna on top of Mauna Kea

This antenna of the Very Long Baseline Array sits on an extinct volcano known as Mauna Kea in Hawai’i. Data from each of the ten 25-meter radio telescopes of the VLBA are shipped to the Array Operations Center in Socorro, New Mexico to be digitally combined. The antennas are spread over a 5,351-mile long baseline from this antenna to its identical sibling on the island of St. Croix.

VLBA Pie Town at Sunset

The Sun sets behind the Pie Town, New Mexico telescope of the Very Long Baseline Array. This 25-meter dish antenna is one of 10 identical antennas spanning 5,351 miles from Hawai’i to the Virgin Islands.

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the U.S. National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.
	Founded in 1956, the NRAO provides state-of-the-art radio telescope facilities for use by the international scientific community. NRAO telescopes are open to all astronomers regardless of institutional or national affiliation. Observing time on NRAO telescopes is available on a competitive basis to qualified scientists after evaluation of research proposals on the basis of scientific merit, the capability of the instruments to do the work, and the availability of the telescope during the requested time. NRAO also provides both formal and informal programs in education and public outreach for teachers, students, the general public, and the media.
	The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense..."
	AUI collaborates with the scientific community and research sponsors to plan, build, and operate cutting-edge facilities. We cultivate excellence, deliver value, enhance education, and engage the public.