Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST)

Definition

The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) is the world's largest filled-aperture radio telescope, located in Guizhou, China. It is used for a variety of astronomical observations including pulsar discovery and interstellar communication research.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. FAST has a dish diameter of 500 meters, making it the largest single-dish radio telescope in the world.
2. It became fully operational in January 2020 after beginning construction in 2011.
3. FAST can detect faint radio waves from deep space due to its highly sensitive instrumentation.
4. The telescope's location in a natural karst depression helps shield it from radio frequency interference.
5. One of FAST's primary goals is to search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) by detecting signals from distant civilizations.

Related terms

Arecibo Observatory:

Was previously the world's largest single-aperture telescope before FAST, located in Puerto Rico.

Pulsar:

A highly magnetized rotating neutron star that emits beams of electromagnetic radiation.

Radio Frequency Interference (RFI): Unwanted signals that interfere with the operation of radio telescopes, often minimized by careful site selection.