Save Arecibo!

Dear Congress...

I am writing to urge you to co-sponsor Senate Bill S. 2862 which directs the National Science Foundation to fully fund the Arecibo Observatory which is currently threatened with closure. Numerous reasons exist to justify continued funding for this essential facility.

• As the largest radio telescope in the world, the Arecibo Observatory is an important asset to America's scientific and technological communities. No other radio telescope comes close to the sensitivity that the Arecibo telescope has.
• Not until the year 2020 will any other telescope even have a chance to surpass Arecibo. If the Square Kilometer Array (to be located in South Africa or Australia) gets all of its funding on time, a decade-long gap without the use of Arecibo (or any comparable telescope) will still plague astronomic, planetary, and atmospheric research.
• Only Arecibo's planetary radar can image and determine exact trajectories of potentially threatening asteroids. This makes Arecibo the best tool for investigating Near Earth Objects and warning the world about possible asteroid threats.
• Radio technologies developed for the Arecibo telescope strengthen the U.S. competitive edge in the global marketplace. Ionospheric radio wave propagation studies conducted at Arecibo form an important component of space technologies, from communications satellites to the Global Positioning System (GPS).
• Arecibo benefits education. Many of our next generation of scientists and engineers receive training at the Arecibo Observatory.
• Arecibo captures the public imagination. Over 120,000 people per year visit this technical wonder while millions more contribute to scientific projects conducted with this telescope. Over 5 million participants have contributed to SETI@home -- the world's largest public participation science project.
• The citizens of the United States, especially those in Puerto Rico, and the scientific community look at Arecibo with pride. The Observatory represents a commitment to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and a major asset to the world scientific community.

I urge you to support S. 2862 to ensure Arecibo Observatory will continue its vital contributions to all of these important scientific and humanitarian missions.