Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory

The observatory contains four spherical antennas measuring 120 feet in diameter and a 45-foot paraboloidal dish for millimeter wavelength observations.

Founded in 1969 by the Five College Astronomy Department, the observatory operated on a peninsula in the Quabbin Reservoir until its decommissioning in 2011.

The facility enabled significant discoveries, including research that contributed to the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics for the study of binary pulsar systems.

The observatory served as a training ground for graduate and undergraduate students from five participating institutions to conduct hands-on radio astronomy research.

Located at an elevation of 306 meters, the observatory specialized in daily monitoring of pulsar emissions and studies of molecular clouds and star formation.

Location: Massachusetts

Official opening: 1969

Elevation above the sea: 306 m

Website: http://www.astro.umass.edu/~fcrao/

Website: http://astro.umass.edu/~fcrao

GPS coordinates: 42.39193,-72.34410

Latest update: May 14, 2025 10:41