FAST will collect radio waves from an area twice the size of the next-largest single-dish telescope, the Arecibo Observatory
GIGANTIC CHINESE TELESCOPE OPENS TO ASTRONOMERS WORLDWIDE: The world’s largest single-dish radio observatory is preparing to open to astronomers around the world, ushering in an era of exquisitely sensitive observations that could help in the hunt for gravitational waves and probe the mysterious fleeting blasts of radiation known as fast radio bursts. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope in southern China has just passed a series of technical and performance assessments, and the Chinese government is expected to give the observatory the final green light to begin full operations at a review meeting scheduled for next month. Read More: www.nature.com