Arecibo Observatory
This observatory is also called the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, although "NAIC" refers to both the observatory and the staff that operates it.The observatory's 1,000 ft (305 m) radio telescope is the world's largest single-aperture telescope. Scientists who want to use the telescope present proposals that are judged by an independent scientific board. It contains the largest curved focusing dish on Earth, giving Arecibo the largest electromagnetic-wave-gathering capacity.The dish surface is made of 38,778 perforated aluminum panels, each about 3 by 6 feet , supported by a mesh of steel cables. The ground underneath is attainable and supports shade-tolerant vegetation.The telescope has three radar transmitters, with effective isotropic radiated powers of 20 TW at 2380 MHz, 2.5 TW (pulse peak) at 430 MHz, and 300 MW at 47 MHz.