The National Science Foundation and Cornell University, which previously
operated Arecibo Observatory, contracted with Penn State’s Electrical
Engineering Department to construct the “new and enhanced” HF ionospheric
instrument. It will be used to study the interaction between HF radio energy and
ionospheric plasma.
The new facility will replace an earlier ionospheric heater in Islote, Puerto
Rico, that was destroyed by Hurricane Georges in 1998. Rather than rebuild that
installation, the new instrument will use the observatory’s 1000 foot dish for
its antenna. This will keep all research activities involving ionospheric
modification at the observatory proper.
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