Chinese government evicting 9,000 people to build a telescope that searches for aliens

12:39 cherishe 0 Comments

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It will be the biggest of its kind and likely, probably, hopefully, lead to the ultimate discovery: that we are not alone.

Later this year, the FAST (Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope) project, a massive telescope that’s 1,640.42 feet in diameter will be unveiled with the express purpose of discovering alien life in the universe. The project first began in 2011 in the south-western part of Guizhou for the “measly” price of 1.2 billion yuan (US$184 million).

While the plans to create the biggest telescope of its kind are well on their way, one of the more difficult tasks before completing the build is uprooting the 9,000 residents who currently live there. Don’t worry, this is not without compensation though as each citizen will receive the “astronomical” sum of 12,000 yuan (US$1,842).

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When completed, the Fast project will be bigger than the 300-meter (984 feet) Arecibo Observatory telescope in Puerto Rico, which is currently the largest in the world. This telescope isn’t just big, however, it’s also being hailed as a massive scientific endeavor. Made up of 4,450 triangular-shaped panels, the dish will be extremely sensitive, allowing it to distinguish between the white noise of space and any alien messages that may be broadcasting out there.

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This seems like a very big step for science, it’s just too bad the citizens of the area had to be displaced in order to make room for the telescope—there’s something a little bit odd about telling actual, living beings here on Earth to move for the sake of maybe, possibly finding life somewhere else…

Source: The Guardian via Otakomu
Images: Xinhua/Jin Liwang