National Science Foundation will look for partners to provide additional financial support for Puerto Rico facility. The US National Science Foundation (NSF), which funds about two-thirds of the observatory’s annual US$12-million budget, has decided to continue operating it in collaboration with as-yet-to-be-decided partners. Over the next five years the agency will reduce its annual contribution from $8.2 million to $2 million, with the rest coming from the unspecified partner institutions.
“I'm so happy they made the right decision,” says Edgard Rivera-ValentÃn, a planetary scientist who works jointly at the observatory and the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas. “I’m so happy the observatory stays alive.”
"This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
It's probably the best outcome possible. AO will continue to operate, but it has to find new partners to make up the funding shortfall. Hopefully this will involve a minimum level of hunting for aliens...
From the Record of Decision :
https://www.nsf.gov/mps/ast/env_impact_reviews/arecibo/final_rod_11152017.pdf
This Alternative might include demolition activities that could remove up to 26 buildings/structures from the site. It is unknown whether specific buildings would be demolished as a collaborative agreement is not yet in place and the needs of any future collaborator(s) are not known at this time. Based on communications with the scientific community, NSF identified the 26 buildings/structures that may be likely candidates for removal, which are provided in Table 2.3-1 of the FEIS. Onsite housing, recreation facilities, and other buildings that could be determined unnecessary would be demolished. Paved roads serving areas that would no longer be used would be removed. The analysis assumes that 26 buildings/structures would be demolished and no new construction would occur, which represents the maximum amount of disturbance that could result under this Alternative.
The wording of this is considerably better than in previous documents, which suggests a slash-and-burn approach and hang the consequences. Now it's seen as a worst-case scenario, with no demolition planned until there's, well, you know, an actual reason for demolition to occur. Some measure of logic appears to have prevailed.
The Commonwealth suffered devastating damage to almost all of its infrastructure. Communications were impossible in the first several days after the Hurricane. When communications were reestablished, NSF learned that the Observatory, though receiving some damage, escaped significant damage. In particular, the damage to structures in the historic district is reparable, and, as a result, NSF determined that no additional NEPA analysis would be needed. If feasible, either through supplemental appropriations for hurricane relief or through normal appropriated funds, NSF intends to fund the repairs of Arecibo Observatory to its pre-hurricane condition.
http://www.nature.com/news/arecibo-telescope-wins-reprieve-from-us-government-1.22994
Hey, Rhys... Is there any way to jet get NSF out of the picture entirely? I know nonprofit accounting, rather better than I'd like to. Nobody would have control of a nonprofit with only 20% of the donation stream. Considering the level of mismanagement from NSF, their only control lever is government ownership of the land itself. I'm sure I don't have to tell you NSF isn't even running anything, it's SRI and others who are doing the heavy lifting.
ReplyDeleteAgain, having eaten the bread of charity for a long time, I know what happens when governments getting involved with Do Gooder Ventures. The money gets very weird. The DGV loses its nonprofit status and can't collect donations. NSF clearly doesn't want to fund the Arecibo Observatory for reasons unknown and unknowable. So... get them out of the picture entirely, offer to buy the facility for a million dollars and tell NSF to go away.
IIRC, the major barrier to that is that AO does not exist as a legal entity. There is no single Arecibo organisation one can purchase the telescope from, nor a single AO institute that could seek its own funding. And I've got a sneaking suspicion that land ownership is similarly complicated. The whole thing's a right mess. It worked well enough when it was a single university administering a government property and everything was stable. When that era ended, things got a lot more complicated. It would of course be possible in principle, but fiendishly difficult in practise.
ReplyDeleteRhys Taylor Here I will boldly venture into Blatherskite Territory. Consider how GMTO is organised:
ReplyDeletegmto.org - Founders | Giant Magellan Telescope
A great long list of orgs, but GMTO is a corporation . That's important. If NSF is backing away from funding AO, I'd put the word out in the donor world, what AO needs is a good corporate attorney. Have him talk to the GMTO leadership, figure out how to do a proper incorporation and assemble a board of directors - ....
... and everything I just said will founder on the reef of NSF Gummint. As I said before, that's government land, Puerto Rico is already a legal No Man's Land. Once Gummint gets involved in these things, they can never be evicted.
I suggested before that ESA or ESO should just buy it. But at this point, the EU should buy Puerto Rico entirely - one island, slightly used, needs some repairs. I heard Spain has problems with some territory going away, this could help them make up for the loss.
ReplyDeleteAnd given how well the US federal government seems to be managing it, Puerto Ricans may prefer depending on the EU instead...
Do not worry. Various Putin founds are waiting for money laundering, so it became a clear signal...
ReplyDeleteIt's a Gordian knot problem. Once you start getting multiple, separate partners trying to negotiate to work together and try to take over from existing multiple, separate partners, each of whom only ever constitute a small fraction of the total, the whole thing becomes a bureaucratic mess that cannot be untied. Maybe it can be undone. Even that's not easy.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with the NSF is that they not only provide the funding reluctantly, but that they dictate what other sources of funding the Observatory may accept. AO needs to be its own organisation so that it can decide who it wants funding from. Getting it negotiated between half a dozen different partners is just too damn complicated.
What's needed is for some single powerful organisation to make a very attractive offer to the NSF to completely take it off their hands. Quite what it would take for them to accept this, I don't know.
I have a vague recollection that the land is owned by multiple organisations and individuals. I know for a fact that the website domain is owned by one of the employees (apparently neither Cornell nor the NSF ever realised that they should purchase it !). It's very, very messy.
Rhys Taylor I see crappy corporate structures a lot. Nobody seems okay with the current setup, least of all NSF. AO needs something akin to GMTO imho.
ReplyDelete