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Comment by jasonkester | Hacker News Reader

Arecibo is really awkwardly placed for being anything but what it was. It’s at the end of a long windy narrow road up the side of a mountain in the jungle. And when you get there, there’s just about enough room for a little building perched on the side of a pit.

They can fit a lot of biology and computer science schools at the base of that road, I bet.

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Its location in a remote area made it good for what it was, a telescope with relatively little surrounding radio interference, but it really isn’t suited for other uses that bring in more people.

It’s unfortunate since there’s a lot of pride about what it used to be on the island, but I feel like this is more of an emotional grasp than something that actually requires that site.

There has also been more and more radio interference at that site over time. It isn't that remote. Sites that are really out in the middle of nowhere in empty desert, like the VLA in New Mexico and MeerKAT in South Africa, have far less radio interference.

It really wasn’t meant to be in a totally radio silent area, but that just happened to be another advantage. The main point was the bowl-shaped area which is somewhat unique. You don’t need that kind of geology just for an educational center.

Having made the trek myself, and seeing one, in my opinion, of the great wonders of the modern world… I can certify that i would not drive there to just experience science museum stuff. Driving in puerto rico is terrifying, and up that hill to Aribaco… never again.

Yep. Parking for visitors (and staff) was an absolute nightmare the entire time I worked there. I can only imagine how much worse it'll be if the revamp the visitor center.

There's almost no space on-site for more parking without tearing up more of the natural environment. Though perhaps without the need to maintain the superstructure any more they could repurpose the Physical Maintenance yards into more parking.

Although expensive, seems that vertical building (underground and above) should be a priority then.

This is how we solve it in Manhattan https://i.imgur.com/qLYlbya.png

Why didn't they made a shuttle?

Wasn't a priority. It was an active scientific facility, so the priority was on producing science. The site was chosen for being remote and shielded from the outside by hills/mountains, so it really is a long winding road to the entrance gate.

I can't really think of a suitable site for parking within say 10min of the site, so it'd be a long shuttle ride.

...and that long, windy road is one-lane, and I don't remember high-quality pavement.

Some of that money would have to be spent on the road, right away, if there is any hope of it to be a general attraction.

That's ideal for a radio telescope, especially considering how reliant modern society is on radio equipment

Given that they don't need the antenna anymore, can't they repurpose the entire pit for buildings?

Sad to see it go away, but for starters they could sell the remaining reflector tiles and make some money for other science related uses.

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