A large engineering and scientific project in China, led by the country’s military-led space program, is creating the world’s largest radio telescope, which will be able to detect radio signals from tens of billions of light years away. The Telescope is known as FAST, which stands for Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope. When the project is complete, the dish on the telescope will be more than 1,600 feet in diameter.
“The telescope has the potential to be a game-changer for our understanding of the universe, and our search for life on other planets. When it is finished it will potentially be able to detect radio signals — and potentially, signs of life — from planets orbiting a million stars and solar systems,” according to KSL.com.
“A radio telescope is like a sensitive ear, listening to tell meaningful radio messages from white noise in the universe. It is like identifying the sound of cicadas in a thunderstorm,” Nan Rendong, chief scientist of the FAST project, said.
“It will help us to search for intelligent life outside of the galaxy and explore the origins of the universe,” Wu Xiangping, director-general of the Chinese Astronomical Society, added.
FAST is being constructed in Guizhou province’s Karst Mountains, according to KSL.com. This location yields minimal interference from radio signals. FAST is expected to be completed in 2016.
