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65-779: The Arecibo Observatory , also known as the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center ( NAIC ) and formerly known as the Arecibo Ionosphere Observatory , is an observatory in Barrio Esperanza , Arecibo, Puerto Rico owned by the US National Science Foundation (NSF). The observatory's main instrument was the Arecibo Telescope , a 305 m (1,000 ft) spherical reflector dish built into

130-539: A federally funded research and development center (FFRDC). NASA began contributing towards funding of the observatory alongside NSF as to support its planetary radar mission. In the early 2000s, NASA started to reduce their contribution to the Arecibo Observatory, putting more pressure on NSF to continue to fund the facility. In 2006, NSF made its first possible suggestion of significantly reducing its funding towards Arecibo and potentially decommissioning

195-498: A LIDAR facility whose research has continued since the main telescope's collapse. Opened in 1997, the Ángel Ramos Foundation Visitor Center features interactive exhibits and displays about the operations of the radio telescope, astronomy and atmospheric sciences . The center is named after the financial foundation that honors Ángel Ramos , owner of the El Mundo newspaper and founder of Telemundo . The Foundation provided half of

260-400: A high percentage of sustained loading revealed an unexpected vulnerability to zinc creep and environments, resulting in long-term cumulative damage and progressive zinc/wire failure". The Arecibo Observatory also has other facilities beyond the main telescope, including a 12-meter (39 ft) radio telescope intended for very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) with the main telescope; and

325-617: A major push to scale-up CSHL research on the brain and psychiatric disorders, beginning in the late 1980s. In 1990, work was completed on the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Laboratory, and the Marks Neuroscience Building was opened in 1999. In 1994, Watson ceased being director of the Laboratory and assumed the title of president. In 2004 he was named chancellor, a position he held until October 2007, when he retired at

390-655: A member of the National Academy of Sciences and a Fellow of the Royal Society , also continues to run a basic research lab, devoted to the study of DNA replication and chromosome maintenance. Stillman is credited with the 1991 discovery and elucidation of the mechanism of the Origin Recognition Complex (ORC), a highly conserved protein complex that recognizes and binds to specific DNA sequences, marking starting points for replication of

455-632: A natural sinkhole , with a cable-mount steerable receiver and several radar transmitters for emitting signals mounted 150 m (492 ft) above the dish. Completed in 1963, it was the world's largest single-aperture telescope for 53 years, surpassed in July 2016 by the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) in China. Following two breaks in cables supporting the receiver platform in mid-2020,

520-1328: A preprint repository for publications in the life sciences. Research staff in CSHL's 52 laboratories numbers over 600, including postdoctoral researchers ; an additional 125 graduate students and 500 administrative and support personnel bring the total number of employees to over 1,200. Cell biology and genomics RNA interference (RNAi) and small-RNA biology; DNA replication ; RNA splicing ; signal transduction; genome structure; non-coding RNAs ; deep sequencing ; single-cell sequencing and analytics; stem cell self-renewal and differentiation; chromatin dynamics; structural biology ; advanced proteomics ; mass spectrometry ; advanced microscopy. Cancer research Principal cancer types under study: breast, prostate, blood (leukemia, lymphoma); myelodysplastic syndrome ; melanoma ; liver; ovarian and cervical; lung; brain; pancreas. Research foci: drug resistance; cancer genomics ; tumor microenvironment ; cancer metabolism; growth control in mammalian cells; transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene regulation . Neuroscience Stanley Institute for Cognitive Genomics employs deep sequencing and other tools to study genetics underlying schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression. Swartz Center for

585-596: A remote 5,640 m (18,500 ft) mountaintop in the Atacama Desert of Chile. The oldest proto-observatories, in the sense of an observation post for astronomy, The oldest true observatories, in the sense of a specialized research institute , include: Space-based observatories are telescopes or other instruments that are located in outer space , many in orbit around the Earth. Space telescopes can be used to observe astronomical objects at wavelengths of

650-428: A slit or other opening in the roof that can be opened during observing, and closed when the telescope is not in use. In most cases, the entire upper portion of the telescope dome can be rotated to allow the instrument to observe different sections of the night sky. Radio telescopes usually do not have domes. For optical telescopes, most ground-based observatories are located far from major centers of population, to avoid

715-722: A summer program for the education of college and high school teachers studying zoology, botany, comparative anatomy and nature. The program began as an initiative of Eugene G. Blackford and Franklin Hooper , director of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, the founding institution of The Brooklyn Museum . In 1904, the Carnegie Institution of Washington established the Station for Experimental Evolution at Cold Spring Harbor on an adjacent parcel. In 1921,

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780-630: A team to review the ERO's work, and as a result the ERO was ordered to stop all work. In 1939 the Institution withdrew funding for the ERO entirely, leading to its closure. The ERO's reports, articles, charts, and pedigrees were considered scientific facts in their day, but have since been discredited. Its closure came 15 years after its findings were incorporated into the National Origins Act ( Immigration Act of 1924 ), which severely reduced

845-419: A week at the absolute reference point calibration measurements are performed. Example magnetic observatories include: Example seismic observation projects and observatories include: Example gravitational wave observatories include: A volcano observatory is an institution that conducts the monitoring of a volcano as well as research in order to understand the potential impacts of active volcanism. Among

910-496: A wider range of projects. Damage to the telescope from Hurricane Maria in 2017 led NSF again to consider the possibility of decommissioning the observatory as the costs of maintaining it had become too great. A consortium led by the University of Central Florida (UCF) stepped forward to offer to manage the observatory and cover a significant portion of the operations and maintenance costs, and in 2018, NSF made UCF's consortium

975-833: Is a facility which precisely measures the total intensity of Earth's magnetic field for field strength and direction at standard intervals. Geomagnetic observatories are most useful when located away from human activities to avoid disturbances of anthropogenic origin, and the observation data is collected at a fixed location continuously for decades. Magnetic observations are aggregated, processed, quality checked and made public through data centers such as INTERMAGNET . The types of measuring equipment at an observatory may include magnetometers (torsion, declination-inclination fluxgate, proton precession, Overhauser-effect), variometer (3-component vector, total-field scalar), dip circle , inclinometer , earth inductor, theodolite , self-recording magnetograph, magnetic declinometer, azimuth compass. Once

1040-541: Is a private, non-profit institution with research programs focusing on cancer, neuroscience , plant biology, genomics , and quantitative biology . It is located in Laurel Hollow on Long Island , New York. It is one of 68 institutions supported by the Cancer Centers Program of the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) and has been an NCI-designated Cancer Center since 1987. The Laboratory

1105-444: Is a scientific institution whose main task is to make observations in the fields of meteorology, geomagnetism and tides that are important for the navy and civil shipping. An astronomical observatory is usually also attached. Some of these observatories also deal with nautical weather forecasts and storm warnings, astronomical time services, nautical calendars and seismology. Example marine observatories include: A magnetic observatory

1170-507: Is led by Bruce Stillman , a biochemist and cancer researcher. Since its inception in 1890, the institution's campus on the North Shore of Long Island has also been a center of biology education. Current CSHL educational programs serve professional scientists, doctoral students in biology, teachers of biology in the K–12 system, and students from the elementary grades through high school. In

1235-590: Is one of a handful of institutions that played a central role in the development of molecular genetics and molecular biology . It has been home to eight scientists who have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine . CSHL is ranked among the leading basic research institutions in molecular biology and genetics, with Thomson Reuters ranking it first in the world. CSHL was also ranked first in research output worldwide by Nature . The Laboratory

1300-658: Is that, because of their location above the Earth's atmosphere, their images are free from the effects of atmospheric turbulence that plague ground-based observations. As a result, the angular resolution of space telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope is often much smaller than a ground-based telescope with a similar aperture . However, all these advantages do come with a price. Space telescopes are much more expensive to build than ground-based telescopes. Due to their location, space telescopes are also extremely difficult to maintain. The Hubble Space Telescope

1365-613: Is the Mauna Kea Observatory , located near the summit of a 4,205 m (13,796 ft) volcano in Hawaiʻi. The Chacaltaya Astrophysical Observatory in Bolivia, at 5,230 m (17,160 ft), was the world's highest permanent astronomical observatory from the time of its construction during the 1940s until 2009. It has now been surpassed by the new University of Tokyo Atacama Observatory , an optical-infrared telescope on

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1430-478: The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy use airplanes to observe in the infrared , which is absorbed by water vapor in the atmosphere. High-altitude balloons for X-ray astronomy have been used in a variety of countries. Example underground, underwater or under ice neutrino observatories include: Example meteorological observatories include: A marine observatory

1495-479: The ionosphere . On November 6, 1959, Cornell University entered into a contract with ARPA to carry out development studies for a large-scale ionospheric radar probe. The Arecibo Telescope was funded as a means to study Earth's ionosphere for this purpose, and serving a dual-use as a general-purpose radio telescope . Construction of the telescope and its supporting facilities were started in September of 1960, with

1560-683: The southwestern United States , Hawaii , Canary Islands , the Andes , and high mountains in Mexico such as Sierra Negra . Major optical observatories include Mauna Kea Observatory and Kitt Peak National Observatory in the US, Roque de los Muchachos Observatory in Spain, and Paranal Observatory and Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile . Specific research study performed in 2009 shows that

1625-580: The Banbury Center, about 25-30 discussion-style meetings are held yearly for a limited number of invited participants. As of 2016, a two-week course at CSHL costs between $ 3,700 and $ 4,700 per student and three-day conferences cost about $ 1,000 per attendee. The DNA Learning Center (DNALC), founded in 1988, was among the early pioneers in developing hands-on genetics lab experiences for middle and high school students. In 2013, 31,000 students on Long Island and New York City were taught genetics labs at

1690-721: The Carnegie Institution of Washington, the newly created institution was in desperate need of funds to support its programs and update facilities. Cairns stabilized the Laboratory and made essential improvements to the facilities. He decided in 1968 that he would step down as Director and he remained at CSHL until 1973, moving then to the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now Cancer Research UK ) in Mill Hill near London, UK. While at CSHL, Cairns performed important experiments on DNA replication in

1755-524: The DNALC and satellite facilities in New York. Over 9,000 high school biology teachers have participated in DNALC teacher-training programs. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press has established a program consisting of seven journals, 190 books, laboratory manuals and protocols, and online services for research preprints. In 2015, CSHL had an operating budget of $ 150 million, over $ 100 million of which

1820-712: The Department of Genetics, no longer supported by the Carnegie Institution of Washington, formally merged with the Biological Laboratory to form the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory of Quantitative Biology . In 1970, the name was simplified to Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. John F. Cairns was appointed as the Director of the merged Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in 1963 and found that in the absence of continued financial support from

1885-422: The ERO for historical, teaching and research purposes. The documents are housed in a campus archive and can be accessed online and in a series of multimedia websites. Carnegie Institution scientists at Cold Spring Harbor made many contributions to genetics and medicine. In 1908 George H. Shull discovered hybrid corn and the genetic principle behind it called heterosis , or "hybrid vigor." This would become

1950-737: The NSF announced the telescope will not be rebuilt, with an educational facility to be established on the site. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York; the University of Maryland, Baltimore County ; the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus in San Juan; and the University of the Sacred Heart , also in San Juan were selected by NSF in 2023 to set up and run an education center called Arecibo C3 (Arecibo Center for Culturally Relevant and Inclusive Science Education, Computational Skills, and Community Engagement). The observatory's main feature

2015-425: The NSF decommissioned the telescope. A full collapse of the telescope occurred on December 1, 2020, before either repairs or controlled demolition could be conducted. In 2022, the NSF announced the telescope will not be rebuilt, with an educational facility to be established on the site. The observatory also includes a smaller radio telescope , a LIDAR facility, and a visitor center, which remained operational after

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2080-845: The Neural Mechanisms of Cognition studies cognition in the normal brain as a baseline for understanding dysfunction in psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. Other research foci: autism genetics; mapping of the mammalian brain; neural correlates of decision making. Plant biology Plant genome sequencing; epigenetics and stem cell fate; stem cell signalling; plant-environment interactions; using genetic insights to increase yield of staple crops, e.g., maize, rice, wheat; increase fruit yield in flowering plants, e.g., tomato. Other initiatives: genetics of aquatic plants for biofuel development; lead role in building National Science Foundation 's iPlant Collaborative cyberinfrastructure. Much of this work takes place on 12 acres of farmland at

2145-658: The Ph.D. degree and fully funds the research program of every student. Students are challenged to obtain their doctoral degree in 4–5 years. The Undergraduate Research Program (URP) for gifted college students (established in 1959), and the Partners for the Future Program for advanced high school students (established in 1990) are now hosted at the SBS. The CSHL Meetings & Courses Program brings over 8,500 scientists from around

2210-582: The Telescope had been used for radar astronomy and radio astronomy , and had been part of the Search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) program. It was also used by NASA for Near-Earth object detection. Since around 2006, NSF funding support for the telescope had waned as the Foundation directed funds to newer instruments, though academics petitioned to the NSF and Congress to continue support for

2275-551: The Watson School of Biological Sciences, was founded in 1999. In 2015, CSHL announced a strategic affiliation with the nearby Northwell Health to advance cancer therapeutics research, develop a new clinical cancer research unit at Northwell Health in Lake Success , NY, to support early-phase clinical studies of new cancer therapies, and recruit and train more clinician-scientists in oncology. CSHL hosts bioRxiv ,

2340-468: The age of 79 after views attributed to him on race and intelligence appeared in the British press. In January 2019, CSHL severed all ties with Watson—and revoked his honorary titles—after he unequivocally restated these views in an American Masters television profile. Since 1994 biochemist and cancer biologist Bruce Stillman has led the Laboratory as director, and since 2003 as president. Stillman,

2405-418: The bacteria E. coli . James D. Watson served as the Laboratory's director and president for 35 years. Upon taking charge in 1968, he focused the Laboratory on cancer research, creating a tumor virus group and successfully obtaining federal funds for an expansion of cancer research capabilities. Watson placed CSHL on a firm financial footing. Inspired by his Nobel collaborator, Francis Crick, Watson initiated

2470-774: The best known are the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and the Vesuvius Observatory . Mobile volcano observatories exist with the USGS VDAP (Volcano Disaster Assistance Program), to be deployed on demand. Each volcano observatory has a geographic area of responsibility it is assigned to whereby the observatory is tasked with spreading activity forecasts, analyzing potential volcanic activity threats and cooperating with communities in preparation for volcanic eruption . Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory ( CSHL )

2535-954: The best possible location for ground-based observatory on Earth is Ridge A  — a place in the central part of Eastern Antarctica. This location provides the least atmospheric disturbances and best visibility. Beginning in 1933, radio telescopes have been built for use in the field of radio astronomy to observe the Universe in the radio portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Such an instrument, or collection of instruments, with supporting facilities such as control centres, visitor housing, data reduction centers, and/or maintenance facilities are called radio observatories . Radio observatories are similarly located far from major population centers to avoid electromagnetic interference (EMI) from radio , TV , radar , and other EMI emitting devices, but unlike optical observatories, radio observatories can be placed in valleys for further EMI shielding. Some of

2600-491: The discovery of adrenocortical hormone , used to treat Addison's disease . Milislav Demerec was named director of the Laboratory in 1941. Demerec shifted the Laboratory's research focus to the genetics of microbes, thus setting investigators on a course to study the biochemical function of the gene. During World War Two, Demerec directed efforts at Cold Spring Harbor that resulted in major increases in penicillin production. Beginning in 1941, and annually from 1945, three of

2665-423: The distance between stars ) or Stonehenge (which has some alignments on astronomical phenomena). Ground-based observatories, located on the surface of Earth, are used to make observations in the radio and visible light portions of the electromagnetic spectrum . Most optical telescopes are housed within a dome or similar structure, to protect the delicate instruments from the elements. Telescope domes have

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2730-477: The effects of light pollution . The ideal locations for modern observatories are sites that have dark skies, a large percentage of clear nights per year, dry air, and are at high elevations. At high elevations, the Earth's atmosphere is thinner, thereby minimizing the effects of atmospheric turbulence and resulting in better astronomical " seeing ". Sites that meet the above criteria for modern observatories include

2795-463: The electromagnetic spectrum that cannot penetrate the Earth's atmosphere and are thus impossible to observe using ground-based telescopes. The Earth's atmosphere is opaque to ultraviolet radiation, X-rays , and gamma rays and is partially opaque to infrared radiation so observations in these portions of the electromagnetic spectrum are best carried out from a location above the atmosphere of our planet. Another advantage of space-based telescopes

2860-589: The entire genome. Stillman has presided over a major expansion of the Laboratory, its size growing threefold since he became director. With construction completed on six linked laboratory buildings on the Hillside Campus in 2009, CSHL added much-needed new laboratory space for cancer and neuroscience research, as well as space for a new program on quantitative biology to bring experts in mathematics, computer science, statistics, and physics to problems in biology. Each year, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory awards

2925-406: The foundation of modern agricultural genetics. In 1916, Clarence C. Little was among the first scientists to demonstrate a genetic component of cancer. E. Carleton MacDowell in 1928 discovered a strain of mouse called C58 that developed spontaneous leukemia – an early mouse model of cancer. In 1933, Oscar Riddle isolated prolactin , the milk secretion hormone and Wilbur Swingle participated in

2990-590: The funds to build the Visitor Center, with the remainder received from private donations and Cornell University . The center, in collaboration with the Caribbean Astronomical Society, hosts a series of Astronomical Nights throughout the year, which feature diverse discussions regarding exoplanets , astronomical phenomena, and discoveries (such as Comet ISON ). The purposes of the center are to increase public interest in astronomy,

3055-426: The morning of December 1, 2020, causing the instrument platform to crash through the dish, shearing off the tops of the support towers, and partially damaging some of the other buildings, though there were no injuries. NSF stated in 2020 that it was their intention to have the other observatory facilities operational as soon as possible and were looking at plans to rebuild a new telescope instrument in its place. In 2022,

3120-732: The nearby CSHL Uplands Farm, where expert staff raise crops and Arabidopsis plants for studies. Seven CSHL faculty members conduct research primarily in plant biology - Drs. David Jackson, Zachary Lippman , Robert Martienssen , Richard McCombie, Ullas Pedmale, Doreen Ware, and Thomas Gingeras . Simons Center for Quantitative Biology Genome assembly and validation; mathematical modeling and algorithm development; population genetics ; applied statistical and machine learning; biomedical text-mining; computational genomics ; cloud computing and Big Data. COVID-19 Scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), Utah Health University, PEEL Therapeutics, and Weill Cornell Medicine worked to examine

3185-534: The new site operators, though no specific actions were announced. After an auxiliary and main cable failure on the telescope in August and November 2020, respectively, the NSF announced the decision that they would decommission the telescope through controlled demolition, but that the other facilities on the observatory would remain operational in the future. Before the safe decommission of the telescope could occur, remaining support cables from one tower rapidly failed in

3250-541: The number of immigrants to America from southern and eastern Europe who, Harry Laughlin testified, were racially inferior to the Nordic immigrants from England and Germany. Charles Davenport was also the founder and the first director of the International Federation of Eugenics Organizations in 1925. Today, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory maintains the full historical records, communications and artifacts of

3315-731: The observatory's research successes, and space endeavors. Source(s): https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/2021/07/03/arecibos-50-years-of-discoveries/ Observatory The term observatoire has been used in French since at least 1976 to denote any institution that compiles and presents data on a particular subject (such as public health observatory ) or for a particular geographic area ( European Audiovisual Observatory ). Astronomical observatories are mainly divided into four categories: space-based , airborne , ground-based, and underground-based. Historically, ground-based observatories were as simple as containing an astronomical sextant (for measuring

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3380-432: The observatory. Academics and politicians lobbied to increase funding earmarked for Arecibo to stave off its closure, and NASA recommitted funding in 2011 for study of near-earth objects . To further cut losses, in 2011 NSF delisted Arecibo as a FFRDC, removed Cornell as the site operator, and replaced them with a collaborative team led by SRI International , which allowed the observatory to be able to offer its facilities to

3445-598: The past 10 years, CSHL conferences & courses have drawn over 81,000 scientists and students to the main campus. For this reason, many scientists consider CSHL a "crossroads of biological science." Since 2009 CSHL has partnered with the Suzhou Industrial Park in Suzhou , China to create Cold Spring Harbor Asia which annually draws some 3,000 scientists to its meetings and courses. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory School of Biological Sciences , formerly

3510-459: The possible function of NETs in COVID-19 , gather blood samples from 33 hospitalized individuals, as well as autopsy tissue. Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) are a form of protection which is utilized by the immune system against certain pathogens. In addition to its research mission, CSHL has a broad educational mission. The School of Biological Sciences (SBS), established in 1998, awards

3575-513: The seminal figures of molecular genetics convened summer meetings at Cold Spring Harbor of what they called the Phage Group . Salvador Luria , of Indiana University; Max Delbrück , then of Vanderbilt University ; and Alfred Hershey , then of Washington University in St. Louis , sought to discover the nature of genes through study of viruses called bacteriophages that infect bacteria. In 1962,

3640-655: The station was reorganized as the Carnegie Institution Department of Genetics. Between 1910 and 1939, the laboratory was the base of the Eugenics Record Office of biologist Charles B. Davenport and his assistant Harry H. Laughlin , two prominent American eugenicists of the period. Davenport was director of the Carnegie Station from its inception until his retirement in 1934. In 1935 the Carnegie Institution sent

3705-481: The telescope collapsed before a controlled demolition could be carried out. The remaining support cables from one tower failed around 7:56 a.m. local time on December 1, 2020, causing the receiver platform to fall into the dish and collapsing the telescope. NASA led an extensive failure investigation and reported the findings, along with a technical bulletin with industry recommendations. The investigation concluded that "a combination of low socket design margin and

3770-740: The telescope operational by 1963. The telescope and supporting observatory were formally opened as the Arecibo Ionospheric Observatory on November 1, 1963. Ownership of the observatory transferred from the DoD to the National Science Foundation on October 1, 1969. NSF named Cornell University to manage the observatory's functions. By September 1971, NSF renamed the observatory as the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC) and had made it

3835-496: The telescope's collapse. The asteroid 4337 Arecibo is named after the observatory by Steven J. Ostro , in recognition of the observatory's contributions to the characterization of Solar System bodies. As part of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) missile defense program, ARPA had sought a means to try to detect incoming missiles while they traveled through

3900-487: The telescope. Numerous hurricanes, including Hurricane Maria , had damaged parts of the telescope, straining the reduced budget. Two cable breaks, one in August 2020 and a second in November 2020, threatened the structural integrity of the support structure for the suspended platform and damaged the dish. The NSF determined in November 2020 that it was safer to decommission the telescope rather than to try to repair it, but

3965-503: The world to Cold Spring Harbor annually to share research results – mostly unpublished—in 60 meetings, most held biannually; and to learn new technologies in 30 to 35 professional courses, most offered annually. The Cold Spring Harbor Symposium series, held every year since 1933 with the exception of three years during the Second World War, has been a forum for researchers in genetics, genomics, neuroscience and plant biology. At

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4030-795: The world's major radio observatories include the Very Large Array in New Mexico , United States, Jodrell Bank in the UK , Arecibo in Puerto Rico , Parkes in New South Wales , Australia, and Chajnantor in Chile . A related discipline is Very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI). Since the mid-20th century, a number of astronomical observatories have been constructed at very high altitudes , above 4,000–5,000 m (13,000–16,000 ft). The largest and most notable of these

4095-420: Was able to be serviced by the Space Shuttles while many other space telescopes cannot be serviced at all. Airborne observatories have the advantage of height over ground installations, putting them above most of the Earth's atmosphere. They also have an advantage over space telescopes: The instruments can be deployed, repaired and updated much more quickly and inexpensively. The Kuiper Airborne Observatory and

4160-462: Was its large radio telescope , whose main collecting dish was an inverted spherical dome 1,000 feet (305 m) in diameter with an 869-foot (265 m) radius of curvature , constructed inside a karst sinkhole . The dish's surface was made of 38,778 perforated aluminum panels, each about 3 by 7 feet (1 by 2 m), supported by a mesh of steel cables. The ground beneath supported shade-tolerant vegetation. Since its completion in November 1963,

4225-451: Was spent on research. Half of the research budget was devoted to cancer; 25% to neuroscience; 15% to genomics and quantitative biology; and 10% to plant sciences. The sources of research funding in 2015 were: 34% Federal (primarily National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation ); 26% auxiliary activities; 22% private philanthropy; 10% endowment; 3% corporate. The institution took root as The Biological Laboratory in 1890,

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