News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Failure Analysis of the Arecibo 305 Meter Telescope Collapse. Parent comment

Re:Failure Analysis of the Arecibo 305 Meter Telescope Collapse by hinkley on Tuesday November 05, 2024 @01:56PM (#42054215)
I think we might need to send some microbiologists to do their own forensics.

You have a mechanical failure that can’t be seen in the labs and isn’t reproducible at other sites. Suggests something environmental.

Like when natural fiber army gear starts dissolving in the jungles of Vietnam.

Could be direct action, or a side effect of a chemical in plant or animal detritus. Like pigeon poop on car paint.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Failure Analysis of the Arecibo 305 Meter Telescope Collapse by madaxe_again on Tuesday November 05, 2024 @04:02PM (#42055138)
The paper posits that it’s due to low frequency electromagnetic induction in the tethers from the observatory operations, which is a pretty unique environmental factor.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Failure Analysis of the Arecibo 305 Meter Telescope Collapse by hinkley on Tuesday November 05, 2024 @06:12PM (#42056017)
Oooh.

Active galvanic action will ruin your day.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Failure Analysis of the Arecibo 305 Meter Telescope Collapse by madaxe_again on Wednesday November 06, 2024 @03:00AM (#42057972)
Not galvanic action, apparently, but rather a sort of phase creep within the zinc as a result of putting some of it in an excitation state. They aren’t sure though, as there hasn’t been much research on the topic.
[ Parent | on HN ]