China has no chill. It has uprooted 9 110 people for a huge alien-searching telescope. And as compensation, they offered each person R30 000. What even is that?
Later this year, the country expects to reveal the world’s largest radio telescope, boosting the global hunt for some extraterrestrials. Costing around 1.2 bn yuan, Fast (Five-hundred-metre Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope) was started in 2011 and is expected to be completed in September this year.
Located in the south-western province of Guizhou, the 500 metre-diameter telescope will help create a sound electromagnetic wave environment.
And here’s some irrelevant information according to one of the scientists on the project:
If the telescope was filled with wine, each of the world’s 7 billion inhabitants could fill about five bottles from it.
Good to know, mate. Here’s some useful information:
Fast is made up of 4 450 triangular-shaped panels. Once the telescope is fully functional, those movable panels will be used to reflect radio signals from distant parts of the universe towards a 30-tonne retina capable of gathering them.
Other scientists on the project are also filled with poetic descriptions:
A radio telescope is like a sensitive ear, listening to tell meaningful radio messages from white noise in the universe. It is like identifying the sound of cicadas in a thunderstorm.
But they continued a little less expressively:
Fast’s high level of sensitivity would help scientists search for intelligent life outside of the galaxy and explore the origins of the universe.
If intelligent aliens exist, the messages that they produced or left behind, if they are being transmitted through space, can be detected and received by Fast.
Fast would allow Beijing to explore deeper into space and look at asteroids and even Mars.
It will give China an opportunity to conduct frontier research.
If we are ever to make contact with aliens, China may play a key role … our eyes and ears are closing in on the possibility of life on another planet.
Oh, China.
[source: theguardian]
