Listening in on the Aliens
WARNING: This post may be too “sciencey” for those of you who are just looking for mindless entertainment. But, if your goal is listening in on the aliens, serious technology is required. Warning issued…
For those of you not following current events, the world just lost some serious technology, as well as a Puerta Rican icon. The Arecibo radio telescope was the world’s largest telescope of its kind for 53 years. This thing was huge, the dish is something like 1,000 feet in diameter. To put it in ACT/SAT terms, the Empire State Building is to New York, as the Arecibo telescope is to Puerto Rico. Well, its gone. The cables started snapping on the suspended receiver. Eventually, enough cables broke and the receiver crashed down on the dish…completely destroying the whole thing.
Arecibo, pre PB 
Arecibo, post PB
While experts continue to try to understand the root cause of the collapse, my readers need to look no more. PugsleyTonks knows the answer. In the 1995 James Bond film, GoldenEye, the Arecibo telescope was the setting for the climatic battle between James Bond and Boromir/Ned Stark. Clearly, the design of the telescope was not conducive to super villain battles. By fighting on the telescope, they undoubtedly damaged the telescope in some way that eventually destroyed Arecibo. So, as well as being the worst James Bond ever, Pierce Brosnan (PB) was the root cause of the Arecibo destruction.
James Bond (i.e. Pierce Brosnan) chucks Boromir (i.e. Ned Stark) off the Arecibo receiver to eventually crash on the dish
Now, what the heck does any of this have to do with my blog? Answer…next man up. Sure, the Arecibo was one of our best ways to listen to deep space aliens, as well as the Russian menace. But, the good old USA is prepared. We have other ways to spy on Russians and keep tabs on aliens. And, that way is the Green Bank Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia.
The Center for Alien eavesdropping 
Can not say much about Science Center…closed due to Covid
The Green Bank Observatory is the USA’s first national radio astronomy observatory. The place is a huge green space in the middle of an isolated West Virginia mountain range. The grounds are like a big nature park with lots and lots of very large radio telescopes. To explain radio telescopes in a way my simplistic brain can understand…the big dish gathers radio waves from far, far off distances. Then, the dish directs the signal to the receiver, which is the pointy part on top. The receiver passes the signal along to a significant amplifier. The amplified signals go into to computers and VOILA’. We listen into Russians and aliens…discover black holes…and lots of many other important things that I do not understand.
In 1937, Grote Reber built the first radio telescope in his mother’s yard. 
Its fun to watch when the telescopes reposition 
Picturesque morning 0n the hidden plateau among the mountains
Another interesting aspect of this area is the US National Radio Quiet Zone. Obviously, these telescopes are subject to picking up lots of interference. Therefore, the US has made a roughly 10,000 square mile area in the Appalachian mountains where radio signals are tightly controlled. The degree of control depends on how close you are to the observatory. For example, if you are really close to the observatory, you might not be able to use a microwave in your home. Cell phone service is very limited to not at all. I could get only one radio station in the car. The radio station featured porch pickin’ music straight from Deliverance. You are supposed to power off your cell phone even though they do not work here anyway. Its the ultimate in radio silence vacations.
Green Back Telescope in Green Back, WV
Of course, we were there during Covid. So, the Science Center was not open to us. But, we could freely walk the grounds. And, it costs nothing to just walk about. It’s pet friendly too. You just head out the path and walk by all the telescopes. The path goes out 1.5 miles to the grand daddy of all telescopes. Its aptly called the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. The telescope is about 500 feet tall and the dish is 100 meters in diameter. The photo above does not do justice to just how big it is. So, check out the photo below on the left. Later that day, we took a railroad trip to the top of one of the mountain ranges. Way off in the distance, we could still see the Green Bank telescope in all its glory.
Apologies for my limited zoom ability 
And, some just fit in your fingers
Now you know how listening in on the aliens is done. Beyond that, with descent weather, the Green Bank telescopes are well worth the 3 mile walk in the park. Post Covid, I hope the Science Center opens back up to add more to the visit. Also, Green Bank is very near to Cass, WV, which was the subject of an earlier post. You can do both easily in a day. Also, Snowshoe Ski Resort…best skiing in the USA east of the Mississippi, but not in the New England area…is within 30 minutes. I hope you have enjoyed this fun AND educational post. PT
Thank you for reading “Listening in on the Aliens” on Traveling with PugsleyTonks
Within 10 minutes of Green Bank is the interesting town of Cass, WV https://travelingwithpt.com/sold-my-soul-to-the-company-store/
If you would like to plan your visit to the Green Bank Observatory https://greenbankobservatory.org/
