This video shows a huge steel structure under the gorgeous starry sky – "China Sky Eye" or FAST, under construction. It is located in the mountains of southwest China. Construction of the FAST project started in 2011 and it was officially put into operation in 2020. Over the past decade, FAST has achieved a "new height" in human exploration of the mysteries of the universe.
FAST, the abbreviation for the 500-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope, is the largest radio telescope in human history, covering an area equivalent to 30 standard football fields. It consists of 4,450 reflector units, with about one million sub-units. The average age of engineers who maintain and operate FAST is less than 34 years old.
At present, FAST is mainly used to receive radio waves from distant celestial bodies. It has discovered more than 660 pulsars, an ideal tool for frontier research like gravitational wave detection and spacecraft navigation. Since 2021, FAST has been open to the scientific community worldwide, and astronomers from any country can apply for observation.
FAST has attracted 240,000 tourists from all over the world to Pingtang County. Astronomical tourism has driven the development of rural areas. By March 2020, Pingtang County has achieved comprehensive poverty alleviation.
In the foreseeable future, FAST will produce more scientific research achievements. China will work with other countries to further explore the mysteries of the universe. (ECNS)
Technicians have begun assembling the world's largest radio telescope, with a dish the size of 30 football grounds, deep in the mountains of southwest China's Guizhou Province. Yesterday afternoon, they began to assemble the telescope's reflector, which is 500 meters in diameter and made up of 4,450 panels. Each panel is an equilateral triangle with sides 11 meters long.
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