The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST), also called "China Sky Eye," was completed on Sept. 25, 2016 in a karst depression in southwestern China's Guizhou Province with the goal of gathering radio signals from the cosmos. Its completion represents a major breakthrough by China in the field of frontier science.
The project was first envisaged by Chinese astronomers in 1994. Built with China's own proprietary technology, it is the world's largest single-aperture and most sensitive radio telescope. When put into operation, FAST will contribute to the observation of celestial bodies and offer great potential for new discoveries.
FAST comprises multiple systems including the active reflector system, feed cabin suspension system, measurement and control system, receiver and terminal system, as well as the observatory.
The active reflector surface is a spherical cap-type cable-membrane structure composed of tens of thousands of steel cables and 4,450 reflecting panels. It is shaped like a huge dish, with a receiving area equivalent to 30 football fields.
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