A variety of feed horns on top of the Green Bank Telescope
At one of the highest points on the Green Bank Telescope, above the main dish, sit feed horns atop a rotating turret containing the receivers.
📸 Credit: NSF/AUI/NSF GBO
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#astronomy #radioastronomy #nrao #greenbanktelescope
#AprilFools Still the best prank our summer students have ever pulled. 😅 This photo is not edited - the students physically placed an "L" and "G" on the NRAO building!
#Astronomy #Astrology #NRAO #RadioAstro
Photo of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory brick building. An L and G have been pasted over the N and M, making the sign say Astrology instead of Astronomy.
#AprilFools Still the best prank our summer students have ever pulled. 😅 This photo is not edited - the students physically placed an "L" and "G" on the NRAO building!
#Astronomy #Astrology #NRAO #RadioAstro
#Astronomy community, this month's issue of the NRAO Newsletter is now available! Read here: https://science.nrao.edu/enews/19.3
Learn about upcoming workshops, #ALMA Cycle 13 Call for Proposals, doctoral dissertation + Jansky Fellows spotlights, events at the VLA, and more.
#RadioAstronomy #NRAO
One year ago today, the #ngVLA prototype antenna dish was LIFTED onto its pedestal. 🏗️📡 Raise your hand if you watched that livestream last year!
mtex antenna technology | Liebherr
📸 Credit: NSF/AUI/NSF NRAO/Desert Drones LLC.
Learn more: ngvla.nrao.edu
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO
The NSF NRAO is excited to host the 2nd Annual Cosmic Horizons Conference this summer with @nsfsimonscosmicai.bsky.social.
🗓️ July 13-16, 2026
📍 Charlottesville, VA
Registration is now open!
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #CosmicAI #NRAO
🚨 Deadline: Feb 4 🚨
The #NSF #NRAO invites scientists to participate in the Semester 2026B Call for Proposals:
Very Large Array (VLA)
Green Bank Telescope (GBT)
Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA)
High Sensitivity Array (HSA)
Global mm VLBI Array (GMVA)
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO #GBO
🚨 Deadline: Feb 4 🚨
The NSF NRAO invites scientists to participate in the Semester 2026B Call for Proposals:
Very Large Array (VLA)
Green Bank Telescope (GBT)
Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA)
High Sensitivity Array (HSA)
Global mm VLBI Array (GMVA)
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO #GBO
#Astronomy community, this month's issue of the NRAO Newsletter is now available! Read here: https://science.nrao.edu/enews/19.1/
Learn about upcoming conferences/workshops, 2026 Jansky Lectureship Call for Nominations, grad student opportunities, ALMA updates, and more.
#RadioAstronomy #NRAO
🚨 Deadline: 1 February 2026 🚨
Calling all undergrad + graduate students looking for summer research opportunities! Application deadline is quickly approaching for the 2026 summer student program at the NSF NRAO/GBO.
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #REU #ResearchAssistantship #NRAO #GBO
Calling all undergrad and graduate students looking for summer research opportunities! The application deadline is approaching quickly for the 2026 summer student program at the NSF NRAO/GBO.
🚨 Apply by February 1! 🚨
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO #GBO #SummerStudent #REU
Photo of the ALMA Observatory array of radio telescopes in a snowy scene. Snow covers the ground and is also visible on the mountains behind the telescopes.
Wishing you a safe and happy holiday season, astronomy fans! ❄️
#NRAO had much to celebrate in 2025, like the new #ngVLA prototype antenna in New Mexico, reaching 1 million NRAO scientific citations, and of course some amazing #astronomy discoveries!
📸 Credit: ESO/NSF NRAO/ALMA/P. Carrillo
NEW: Astronomers Map Mysterious “Dark” Gas in the Milky Way
For the first time, astronomers using the Green Bank Telescope have created a large-scale map of a mysterious form of matter known as CO-dark molecular gas.
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #GreenBankTelescope #NRAO
Black and white historical photograph of a group of 7 men standing around a model of a radio telescope
#OnThisDay Dedication of the NRAO - October 17, 1957.
Hard to believe it's been 68 years!
👤 From left: Richard M. Emberson, Lloyd V. Berkner, G. A. Nay, John W. Findlay, Ned L. Ashton, David S. Heeschen, H. Hockenberry, with model of 140 Foot Telescope
#OTD #FlashbackFriday #NRAO #RadioAstronomy
Group of visitors on a guided tour at the Very Large Array, standing near the Bracewell Sundial. A large radio telescope is visible in the background and there are dark storm clouds on the horizon.
Photo of two people posing and smiling for the camera at the VLA Open House event. They both have radio telescope temporary tattoos on their faces.
Photo of two people smiling and posing for the camera, holding a small white terrier dog between them. They are outdoors at the Very Large Array with trees and buildings visible behind them.
Photo of people ordering food from an "Authentic Mexican Food" truck at the VLA Open House event. The back of the ngVLA prototype antenna dish can be seen in the background, under a cloudy sky.
Thanks to all who joined us at the VLA Fall Open House this past weekend! 📡 We appreciate you braving the weather and spending the day with us.
🗓️ Stay tuned for our next VLA Open House which will be in April 2026, date TBD.
#VeryLargeArray #VLA #RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #NewMexico
NEW: Astronomers Discover Fastest-Evolving Radio Signals Ever Observed from Black Hole Tearing
The team - using the NSF Very Large Array and ALMA along with several partner telescopes - discovered the first radio-bright tidal disruption event (TDE) outside a galaxy’s center.
#RadioAstronomy #NRAO
Calling it the Next Generation Very Large Array and not the Ginormous Array or the Humungous Array or the Bodacious Array was a missed opportunity that won’t come around again.
#radioastronomy #Astronomy #vla #ngvla #nrao
NEW: NRAO to Outfit the VLBA with New Ultra Wideband Receivers
A major upgrade is coming to the NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) – state-of-the-art ultra wideband receivers capable of operating across the frequency range of 8 - 40 gigahertz (GHz).
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VLBA
Satellite Internet Meets Space Science: A Groundbreaking Solution for Spectrum Sharing
#NRAO and @SpaceX join forces to reduce radio interference, paving the way for uninterrupted astronomical discoveries and national connectivity […]
SpaceX NRAO partnership and Astronomers Find Common Ground: A New Chapter for Starlink and the Night Sky SpaceX NRAO partnership: An inspiring leap—radio astronomers have developed an automated s...
#Astronomy #News #SpaceX #Starlink #NRAO #RadioAstronomy […]
[Original post on nasaspacenews.com]
NEW: NSF VLBA Peers Into the "Eye of Sauron" to Solve Cosmic Neutrino Mystery
VLBA radio observations reveal why a distant blazar appears sluggish yet blazes brightly – its powerful jet points almost directly at Earth, creating a "searchlight" effect.
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO #VLBA #Blazar
NEW: Astronomers (Using NSF VLA + VLBA) Catch Supermassive Black Hole in the Act of “Waking Up”
"This is like watching a sleeping giant wake up... It’s an incredibly rare opportunity to study the ‘before’ picture of black hole feedback.”
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #VLA #VLBA #NRAO #BlackHole
NEW: Comet’s Water Holds Clues to Life on Earth
ALMA observations show that water from a comet (Halley-type 12P/Pons-Brooks) is strikingly similar to that found in Earth’s oceans, strengthening the theory that comets helped make our planet habitable.
#Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #ALMA #NRAO #Comet
NEW: ALMA Sheds Light on “the Cosmic Grapes”
Super high-resolution #ALMA and #JWST observations unveil unexpected details of rapid growth in a faint, newborn “grape-like” galaxy, similar to galaxies in the early universe following the Big Bang. 🍇
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO
Old photo showing the first VLBA antenna construction in 1986. A partially built antenna and a large crane stand out against the blue sky.
Close-up photo of the first VLBA antenna construction in 1986. The completed frame of the dish stands out against a blue sky. Workers, who appear very small compared to the large scale of the dish, install panels on the dish's surface.
Old photo of the first VLBA antenna construction in 1986. Some of the frame is constructed while other pieces sit on the ground. The sky behind the antenna is blue and filled with fluffy white clouds.
Radio #ImageoftheWeek 📡 Construction of the first NSF Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) antenna - Pie Town, NM - circa 1986.
See more VLBA photos from the Archives: nrao.edu/archives/col...
📸 Credit: NSF/AUI/NSF NRAO
#Throwback #Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #VLBA #VeryLongBaselineArray #NRAO
Astrophotography image of a VLA radio telescope under a starry sky with the Milky Way, set against a horizon glowing with the light of a distant sunset.
Girls will be like "I needed this" and it's literally just skies dark enough to see all the stars ✨
(It's us, we're the girls)
📍 Very Large Array - New Mexico
📸 Credit: NSF/AUI/NSF NRAO/Bettymaya Foott
#Astrophotography #Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #VeryLargeArray #VLA #VisitVLA #NRAO
NEW: Groundbreaking Magnetic Field Discovery Near Massive Protostar Made Possible by NSF NRAO’s Very Large Array
For the first time, astronomers detected circular polarization in radio emission from a massive protostar!
#RadioAstronomy #Astronomy #NRAO #VeryLargeArray #VLA #Protostar
#Astronomy community, this month's issue of the NRAO Newsletter is now available! Read here: science.nrao.edu/enews/18.7/
Learn more about upcoming workshops/conferences, a new partnership with Texas Tech, the VLA+VLBA to ngVLA Transition Report, and more.
#RadioAstronomy #Astrophysics #NRAO
The last part of the ascent: a ladder up into the bowl of the radio telescope dish. The sky is impossibly blue.
The inside of the dish, showing various sizes for various wavelengths of radio waves.
A shadow of me against the stark white reflective interior of a dish.
The number of stairs and ladders to get to the top is also Very Large. #NRAO #VLA
