Photo – Page 56 – National Radio Astronomy Observatory

Staring at the Sun

The 45-foot telescope in Green Bank, West Virginia watches the Sun all day. A 70-300 MHz mid-frequency-range antenna points outwards on top of the quadropod arms.

This equipment was installed in the control room of the 85-foot Howard E. Tatel telescope in Green Bank in 1960. Dr. Frank Drake used it to perform the world’s first search for extraterrestrial intelligence. He called the search Project Ozma, after the fictional queen of Oz. For two months, Drake and his team observed the stars Tau Ceti and Epsilon Eridani, two nearby, Sun-like stars. No signs of ETI were detected.

Moving House in Green Bank

Several farms were purchased in Green Bank to form the NRAO’s first observatory. Instead of being demolished, the houses that were in the way of telescope and building placement were moved to new locations around town and got new owners.

An 85-foot Telescope on the Move

Moving the 85-2 telescope farther along the road separating it from its partner, the 85-1, otherwise known as the Howard E. Tatel Telescope. The two telescopes formed the NRAO’s first array, the Green Bank Interferometer. Changing the distance between the 85-footers changed the resolution of the array’s combined view: farther equals higher resolution.

Construction of the 85-3

Assembling the 85-3, the third 85-foot telescope kit purchased from the Blaw-Knox Corporation. In 1967, it joined the 85-2 and 85-1, also known as the Howard E. Tatel 85-foot telescope, to expand the NRAO’s first array, the Green Bank Interferometer. The GBI was changeable, because these additional telescopes had their own built-in truck wheels to haul them up and down a stretch of road leading from the Tatel. Changing the distance between the 85-footers changed the resolution of the array’s combined view: farther equals higher resolution. By adding a third element into the array, the sensitivity of the array increased.

An Eagle Has Landed

The 27 antennas of the Very Large Array (VLA) offer wonderful vantage points for New Mexico’s birds of prey. Here, a Golden Eagle watches the desert for a snack fifty feet in the air on the wiring shelf of an antenna.

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.