Blog Post

World’s Largest Fully Steerable Radio Telescope, world record in Green Bank, West Virginia

May 25, 2024

Green Bank, West Virginia, United States--The Green Bank Telescope (GBT), part of the national Radio Astronomy Observatory site at Green Bank, West Virginia, is 60% taller than the Statue of Liberty with 16 million pounds; the 110-by-100-metre (360-by-330-foot) off-axis radio telescope stes the world record for being the World’s Largest Fully Steerable Radio Telescope, according to the WORLD RECORD ACADEMY.

"The largest fully steerable radio telescope in the world is the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT) located in Green Bank, West Virginia. This 110-by-100-metre (360-by-330-foot) off-axis radio telescope was completed in 2000 and operates at wavelengths as short as a few millimeters," the Britannica says.

"The moving structure, which weighs 7.3 million kg (16 million pounds), points to any direction in the sky with an accuracy of only a few arc seconds. The secondary reflector is held by an off-axis support structure to minimize radiation from the ground and unwanted reflections from support legs.

"Each of the 2,004 surface panels that make up the parabolic surface is held in place by computer-controlled actuators that keep the surface accurate to a few tenths of a millimetre. The GBT is located in the National Radio Quiet Zone, which offers unique protection for radio telescopes from local sources of man-made interference."

"The Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT) in Green Bank, West Virginia, US is the world's largest fully steerable radio telescope, surpassing the Effelsberg 100-m Radio Telescope in Germany.

"The Green Bank site was part of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) until September 30, 2016. Since October 1, 2016, the telescope has been operated by the independent Green Bank Observatory. The telescope's name honors the late Senator Robert C. Byrd who represented West Virginia and who pushed the funding of the telescope through Congress.

"The Green Bank Telescope operates at meter to millimeter wavelengths. Its 100-meter diameter collecting area, unblocked aperture, and good surface accuracy provide superb sensitivity across the telescope's full 0.1–116 GHz operating range. The GBT is fully steerable, and 85 percent of the local celestial hemisphere is accessible. It is used for astronomy about 6500 hours every year, with 2000–3000 hours per year going to high-frequency science." (Wikipedia)

"Over the past 60 years a number of new telescopes have been built at the site, including the 100-m Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope, a fully steerable telescope which operate from 0.2 GHz through 116 GHz and is the premiere telescope operating across those wavelengths," the official website says.

"The scientific discoveries which have, and are, taking place in Green Bank are too many to number. A few include:

First unambiguous discovery of a radio recombination line (1965)
Discovery of compact HII regions (1961)
Roughly 1/2 of all known molecules that have transitions at centimeter wavelengths (1960-1995)
First organic polyatomic molecule ever detected in the interstellar medium (1969)
First long-chain molecule detected (HC3N) (1971)
First detection of Zeeman splitting (1968)
First detection of HI absorption by another galaxy (1970)
First transcontinental observations using VLBI techniques (1968)
First detection of a pre-biotic molecules in space (2008)
First detection of a chiral (handed) molecule in space (2016)
First pulsar discovered in a supernova remnant (1968)

"The 110-meter dish of the Green Bank Telescope can be aimed all over the sky, thanks to its rotating base and a huge tilting gear," The National Radio Astronomy Observatory says.

"It is the largest, fully-steerable telescope in the world and the largest moving object ever built on land."

"The Green Bank Telescope is 485 feet high. It weighs 17 million pounds and has a dish 2.3 acres across. The GBT is the largest moving structure on land, and the largest fully-steerable telescope in the world," The National Radio Astronomy Observatory says.

"It was completed in 2000 and remains the most accurate and versatile large single-dish telescope in use today."

"Built between 1991 and 2002, not only is the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope the world’s largest fully steerable radio telescope, it is also the world’s largest moveable land object," the Silicon Republic says.

"It is part of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) site at Green Bank, West Virginia. The Green Bank Telescope operates at metre-to-millimetre wavelengths. Its 100-metre diameter collecting area, unblocked aperture, and good surface accuracy provide superb sensitivity across the telescope’s full 0.1–116GHz operating range.

"The GBT is fully steerable, and 85pc of the entire celestial sphere is accessible. It is used for astronomy about 6,500 hours every year, with 2000–3000 hours per year going to high-frequency science."

"China started to build the world's largest fully steerable radio telescope this week in its northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region," the CGTN says.

"The QiTai radio Telescope (QTT), located in Qitai County, Xinjiang, will have a steerable dish with a diameter of 110 meters – 10 percent larger than that of the Green Bank Telescope in America's West Virginia, which is currently the largest of this type in the world.

"It will take about six years to complete the construction of the QTT. Upon completion, it will be able to cover 75 percent of the sky with high-sensitivity, providing a world-class observation platform for studies in such areas as black holes, quasars, fast radio bursts, dark matter, gravitational waves and the origins of life in the universe."

"The Green Bank Telescope (GBT) is the world’s largest fully steerable radio telescope, and being 60% taller than the Statue of Liberty with 16 million pounds, it is the world’s largest moveable land object," the Communications & Power Industries says.

"The GBT is part of the national Radio Astronomy Observatory site at Green Bank, West Virginia.

"GBT PERFORMANCE:

8000 m2 surface area
7300 metric tons
0.3 arc second resolution

"The Green Bank Observatory (GBO) is home to the largest moveable object on land that humans have ever built — a radio telescope. It’s also home to countless juxtapositions," the American Physical Society says.

"Surrounded by mountains and in the middle of two radio quiet zones, GBO lacks Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and reliable cellular service — but even as it seeks to quiet modern technology, the observatory relies on it. It boasts the latest receiver technologies, but the data it collects leaves GBO via miles of ethernet cables.

"Staff can point the telescope at a distant galaxy with the uncertainty of a few arcseconds, but they aren’t allowed to heat coffee in a microwave."

"Green Bank Observatory, located in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, is home to eight telescopes, including the world's largest fully steerable telescope, the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT). The observatory has been a pioneer in modern radio astronomy since its first telescope, the 85-foot (26 meters) Tatel radio telescope, was built in 1959," the Space.com says.

"The observatory sits within the borders of the 13,000-square-mile (34,000 square kilometers) National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), where radio transmissions are heavily restricted and regulated to limit interference with the telescopes. The nearby town of Green Bank has been called the quietest town in America, where devices that emit radio waves, including cellphones, Wi-Fi routers and even microwave ovens are outlawed.

"The radio-free environment allows astronomers to observe sections of the electromagnetic spectrum otherwise drowned out by the constant radio noise we inadvertently create while using modern technology."