China Building World’s biggest radio telescope

Since it was completed in 1963, 305 m (1000 ft) and 73 000 square meters (790,000 square meters), open one of the largest radio telescope ever built, a gathering space around the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. But meter Arecibo (FAST), to open hundreds of global radio telescope in Guizhou Province in southern China is about to lose the title of the building. After completion in 2016, the FAST study was three times higher in the sky of more than ten times faster than the Arecibo will be able to see more places.

Field in full first proposed by China 3000 km (1864 miles), the signals of thousands of antennas spread over an area that combines a series of small square kilometers (CBF), select, associations square kilometers (0.38 square miles ). SKA South Africa and Australia will be built in the southern hemisphere, is now vying for the right to host the project.

However, the review and FAST FAST science and technology advice in 2006 the international conference held in Beijing, will be completed. Now CNY700 million (approximately U.S. $ 107.9 million) as a green light, and FAST funding of the approved budget for next year. Guizhou in the south of the low Dawodang building began in March.


FAST to be able to deform the surface of the workforce in real-time control of some mirrors, support structure cable is concentrated at a point along the plate in line with the overall curvature of the Arecibo radio is to focus on the contrary. As described by PopSci, the triangular panels of aluminum 4400 plate of all the Arecibo dish the size of a subset of the large tank, will form part of a parabolic mirror.


Unprecedented sensitivity and speed by using the FAST topography, the project of the Milky Way and other galaxies far neutral hydrogen, the detection of new pulsars (both galactic and extragalactic), the first search for star extraterrestrial life, and perhaps the lights are expected to allow many people to research the most interesting. Should be able to detect more than 1000 light years from the transmission.

FAST with a construction period of 5.5 years is expected to be completed in 2016.