The Very Large Array radio telescope in New Mexico, with its multiple dishes familiar to audiences of movies like “Contact,” needs a new name. The public is being asked to submit suggestions for a new name for the facility to mark the end of a decade’s worth of upgrades that have increased VLA’s technical capabilities by a factor of as much as 8,000. Officials at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory said the facility’s original 1970s electronics have all been replaced with state-of-the-art equipment and a new name should reflect its new capabilities. The observatory is soliciting ideas for a new name from the public. In addition to “Contact,” the iconic spread of radio dishes near Magdalena, New Mexico, have had cameo appearances in “Armageddon” and “Transformers: Dark of the Moon.” Submit your suggestion at www.nrao.edu.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Name The Telescope
The Very Large Array radio telescope in New Mexico, with its multiple dishes familiar to audiences of movies like “Contact,” needs a new name. The public is being asked to submit suggestions for a new name for the facility to mark the end of a decade’s worth of upgrades that have increased VLA’s technical capabilities by a factor of as much as 8,000. Officials at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory said the facility’s original 1970s electronics have all been replaced with state-of-the-art equipment and a new name should reflect its new capabilities. The observatory is soliciting ideas for a new name from the public. In addition to “Contact,” the iconic spread of radio dishes near Magdalena, New Mexico, have had cameo appearances in “Armageddon” and “Transformers: Dark of the Moon.” Submit your suggestion at www.nrao.edu.
