Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory

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Image:Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory.Radome-enclosed 14-m Telescope.jpg

The Five College Radio Astronomical Observatory (FCRAO) was founded in 1969 by the Five College Astronomy Department (University of Massachusetts, Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College and Smith College). From its inception, the observatory has emphasized research, the development of technology and the training of students—both graduate and undergraduate. The observatory is located on a peninsula within the Quabbin Reservoir.

The initial FCRAO telescope was a customized low-frequency antenna to search for pulsars in the galaxy. The development of instrumentation within the FCRAO labs contributed to the discovery of the [[binary pulsar system PSR 1913+16]] by Joseph Hooton Taylor Jr. and Russel Hulse and for which they received the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics.

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