An Oral History of the Arecibo Observatory

Carmen Pantoja Arecibo Observatory/NAIC via Astronomy

62 years ago, the Arecibo Ionospheric Observatory formally opened on November 1, 1963. After it’s devastating collapse in 2020, Astronomy compiled an oral history chronicled by researchers throughout the years.

Upon opening in 1963, the telescope was called the Arecibo Ionosphere Observatory. Conceived by Cornell University electrical engineer William Gordon as an enormous radar to study the ionosphere, the facility was managed by Cornell and funded by the U.S. military’s Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), which was interested in using it to track nuclear missile launches. That Arecibo would become the world’s most iconic radio telescope, discovering exotic stars and alien worlds, was almost an accident of history.

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