This marks the end of a nearly 60 year sky gazing career that has not only helped us to better understand the universe,

這標誌著近60年的觀天生涯結束，不僅幫助我們更好地瞭解宇宙。

but has also scoured the skies searching for any signal from extraterrestrial worlds.

但也在天空中搜尋來自地外世界的任何信號。

So, what happened to this one of a kind behemoth structure?

那麼，這個獨一無二的龐然大物結構怎麼了？

What we know right now is that the destruction of this iconic observatory was due to multiple cable malfunctions.

我們現在知道的是，這個標誌性的天文臺被毀是由於多條電纜故障造成的。

The National Science Foundation hasn't given any further details about the fall,

美國國家科學基金會還沒有給出更多關於秋天的細節。

but we do know that at the beginning of November 2020 they'd actually been discussing plans

但我們知道，在2020年11月初，他們其實一直在討論計劃。

to safely decommission the observatory by gently lowering the central platform.

輕輕放下中央平臺，使觀測站安全退役。

But unfortunately, nature had other plans.

但不幸的是，大自然另有安排。

Luckily, no one was harmed in the collapse of the observatory, but sadly this ends an era of space exploration.

幸運的是，沒有人在天文臺的坍塌中受到傷害，但令人遺憾的是，這結束了一個太空探索的時代。

The initial idea for Arecibo actually started in the 1950s by Professor William Gordon from Cornell University.

阿雷西博最初的想法其實是由康奈爾大學的威廉-戈登教授在20世紀50年代開始的。

Gordon had the desire to study the ionosphere, which is the layer of our Earth's atmosphere that can reflect radio waves.

戈登有研究電離層的願望，電離層是地球大氣層中能反射無線電波的一層。

The funding for this revolutionary project came from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency or DARPA in 1959,

這個革命性項目的資金來自國防高級研究計劃局，即1959年的DARPA。

when Cornell University signed a contract to conduct development studies centered around large-scale radar probes.

當康奈爾大學簽署了一份以大型雷達探測器為中心進行開發研究的合同。

Four years later in 1963, construction was completed in the limestone hills of Arecibo, Puerto Rico.

四年後的1963年，在波多黎各阿雷西博的石灰岩山上完成了建設。

The completed project featured a 817-metric-ton equipment platform,

完成的項目中，有一個817噸的設備平臺。

which was suspended over 152 meters above its spherical reflector.

它被懸掛在152米高的球形反射器上方。

This reflector measured 305 meters, making it the world's largest single radio telescope of its time.

這個反射鏡的測量距離為305米，是當時世界上最大的單臺射電望遠鏡。

Well, until 2016 when China developed its own single radio telescope called

好吧，直到2016年，中國研發出了自己的單射電望遠鏡，叫做

the Five-Hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope, or FAST.

五百米口徑球面射電望遠鏡，即FAST。

And as the name implies it is nearly 200 meters larger than Arecibo.

而顧名思義，它比阿雷西博大近200米。

But did FAST send one of the first radio messages ever into deep space?

但FAST是否向深空發送了有史以來第一條無線電資訊？

Known as the Arecibo Message, it consisted of 1,679 zeros and ones, arranged in 73 rows and 23 columns.

它被稱為阿雷西博資訊，由1,679個0和1組成，分73行23列排列。

The bits formed pictures of a stick man, the radio telescope, a DNA helix, the solar system, the numbers 1 through 10, and more.

位形成了棒人、射電望遠鏡、DNA螺旋、太陽系、數字1到10等圖片。

It was then broadcasted into deep space toward the M13 star cluster in the Hercules constellation.

然後向深空廣播，向大力神座的M13星團廣播。

The famous 1,679-bit picture was intended to demonstrate the tremendous broadcasting capability of Arecibo

著名的1,679位圖片是為了展示阿雷西博的巨大廣播能力。

while also potentially contacting any extraterrestrial life living within the M13 star cluster.

同時也有可能接觸到生活在M13星團內的任何外星生命。

Pretty freaky, huh?

很怪異吧？

And to make things even cooler, in 1992 Arecibo changed our understanding of space forever

更酷的是，1992年，阿雷西博永遠改變了我們對太空的認識。

when scientists used it to discover the first exoplanets, or planets outside of our solar system.

科學家用它發現了第一顆系外行星 或太陽系外的行星。

This discovery came more than 2,300 light-years away, orbiting a pulsar named PSR B1257+12.

這一發現來自2300多光年外，圍繞一顆名為PSR B1257+12的脈衝星運行。

And if you're wondering what a pulsar is, it's a neutron star,

如果你想知道脈衝星是什麼，它是一顆中子星。

which is actually one of the densest known objects in the universe.

它實際上是宇宙中已知密度最大的物體之一。

But unlike regular neutron stars, pulsars give off regular pulses of radio frequency.

但與普通中子星不同，脈衝星會發出有規律的射電頻率脈衝。

Which could be picked up by the highly sensitive antennas on Arecibo.

阿雷西博上的高敏感度天線可以接收到。

And the discovery of exoplanets gave scientists around the world

而系外行星的發現給了全世界的科學家們

confirmation that there were other orbiting bodies outside of our own solar system.

證實在我們太陽系之外還有其他軌道天體。

Since its initial construction, Arecibo got a major upgrade to make it even more impressive.

自最初建造以來，阿雷西博得到了重大升級，使其更加令人印象深刻。

In 1996, the Gregorian dome was added to the observatory.

1996年，天文臺增加了格里高利圓頂。

This allowed it the unique ability to transmit radio waves and receive their reflections from other objects.

這使它具有獨特的能力，可以發射無線電波，並接收其他物體的反射。

This was done using a series of mirrors, to focus radio waves both in and out of the dome.

這是用一系列的鏡子，將無線電波聚焦在穹頂內外。

Scientists could then set the receivers to monitor asteroids.

然後，科學家可以設置接收器來監測小行星。

And when it comes to planetary defense, ignorance is definitely not bliss.

而在行星防禦方面，無知絕對不是幸福。

To date, NASA has identified nearly 25,000 near earth objects, thanks to the help of Arecibo and other instruments.

迄今為止，在阿雷西博和其他儀器的幫助下，美國宇航局已經確定了近2.5萬個近地物體。

The loss of Arecibo is huge in the astronomy community,

阿雷西博的損失在天文學界是巨大的。

even sparking the social media campaign #WhatAreciboMeansToMe.

甚至引發了社交媒體活動#WhatAreciboMeansToMe。

But now the astronomy community is moving forward

但現在天文學界正在向前發展。

by trying to replicate some of Arecibo's functionality in other instruments.

通過嘗試在其他工具中複製Arecibo的一些功能。

As for me, I'm personally looking forward to using the technologies we have today

對我來說，我個人很期待使用我們今天的技術。

to continue our exploration of the galaxy through radio frequency.

以繼續通過無線電頻率探索銀河系。

And who knows? Maybe we'll develop an even better version of Arecibo in the future.

誰知道呢？也許我們將來會開發出一個更好的阿雷西博版本。

Did you know that Arecibo was built into a natural sinkhole?

你知道阿雷西博是建在一個天然的天坑裡嗎？

For more space content, check out my other video on the rocket fuel that could take us to Mars.

更多的太空內容，請看我的另一個視頻，關於可以帶我們去火星的火箭燃料。

Let us know if you liked this episode in the comments below and make sure to subscribe.

如果你喜歡這一集，請在下面的評論中告訴我們，並一定要訂閱。

Thanks for watching and I'll see you next time.

謝謝你的觀看，我們下次再見。