A broken cable smashed a hole 100 feet wide in the Arecibo Observatory, which searches for aliens and tracks dangerous asteroids

Arecibo Observatory

• A cable broke and tore a hole in the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico on Monday.
• The telescope had just reopened to study a potentially dangerous asteroid, shortly after Tropical Storm Isaias passed over the island.
• It's unclear why the cable broke, but the facility is closed again as engineers assess the damage.
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One of the world's most prominent astronomical observatories has a hole.

On Monday, a 3-inch-thick cable at the Arecibo Observatory broke, tearing a gash 100 feet long in the reflector dish of the 20-acre radio telescope in Puerto Rico.

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