China to upgrade world's largest single-dish radio telescope
It is the world's largest single-dish and most sensitive radio telescope and has made many significant discoveries since its launch in 2016.
China's 500m Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) will soon be upgraded with 24 smaller telescopes built within the FAST site equal to 30 standard football fields.
Get up close to this monumental telescope, nicknamed ‘Tianyan’.
#china #fast #telescope
China's 500m Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) will soon be upgraded with 24 smaller telescopes built within the FAST site equal to 30 standard football fields.
Get up close to this monumental telescope, nicknamed ‘Tianyan’.
#china #fast #telescope
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NewsTranscript
00:00This is Tianyuan, meaning eye of heaven or sky eye. It is China's fast radio telescope
00:11with the world's largest single dish measuring 500 meters. Located in a deep depression in
00:16southwest China's Guizhou province, the telescope is eight years old. Its job is searching for
00:22radio-emitting stars, or pulsars, interstellar molecules and extraterrestrial intelligence.
00:29Pulsar observation is a vital task for confirming the existence of gravitational radiation
00:34and black holes, and a major upgrade has just been announced. To boost its astronomical
00:39observation capability, 24 smaller telescopes with 40-meter antennas will be built within
00:45five kilometers of the fast site. We think it has nearly reached the limit of the telescope's
00:50capacity. We hope to sustain its leading performance on the international stage for the long term,
00:56enabling Chinese astronomers to continually produce cutting-edge scientific achievements.