[asapmembers] Arecibo Observatory Needs Your Help

[secretary at areciboscience.org]

Dear ASAP Member:  

    Arecibo Observatory is in a dire and urgent funding situation, unlike any we have
ever seen.  We realize that you may have heard some or all of what follows, but the 
immediacy of the situation indicates that we need the assistance of each and every 
ASAP member in advocating for the Observatory immediately.  It is rumored that the 
Observatory management contract will be extended for a further 18 months—that is, 
only 18 months—so crucial decisions are now being made by the NSF.  Our responses 
now may well be our best and last chance to affect the situation.

	The emergency situation is prompted by several recent major developments.  A 
number of them are summarized in a May 23 NSF "Notice of Intent" in the Federal Register, 
which requests input on four proposed future paths for the Observatory, including "mothballing"
and "deconstruction."  It also cites the recent NSF Atmospheric and Geospace Science 
Portfolio Portfolio Review recommendation for a ~75% funding cut to the Observatory's 
Space and Atmospheric Sciences program (See ref.1 below for a link to the Notice.) 

	The Notice provides two avenues for us to have input into the process, and it is
these paths that we ask you to pursue (details are provided in ref. 1):

1. NSF "Environmental" hearings in Puerto Rico on June 7 (in little more than a week!).
We urge any of you who are able to attend in either San Juan (930-1130 AM) or Arecibo 
(6-8 PM), please do so!

2. An NSF call for letters concerning the Observatory to be sent by June 23 (less than
a month from now).  We believe it is crucial that ASAP members and their students and 
colleagues create and send many letters of support by that deadline.  We, the ASAP Board, 
are writing our own letters of support and will shortly make samples available to ASAP  
members, along with related suggestions.  
 
	Finally, if you have any urgent questions or suggestions that are not covered
above or in reference 1, feel free to contact the ASAP board at board at areciboscience.org ,
or any member thereof.  (A roster of board and regular members can be found at 
http://areciboscience.org/WhoAreWe.html   )


With many thanks,

The ASAP Board 
_____________________________
References

1.  The document is called Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
and Initiate Section 106 Consultation for Proposed Changes to Arecibo Observatory Operations, 
Arecibo, Puerto Rico and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings and Comment Period and is at
 https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2016/05/23/2016-12036/notice-of-intent-to-prepare-an-environmental-impact-statement-and-initiate-section-106-consultationutm_campaign=subscription+mailing+list&utm_medium=email&utm_source=federalregister.gov
_______________________________________________
asapboard mailing list
asapboard at areciboscience.org
http://areciboscience.org/mailman/listinfo/asapboard_areciboscience.org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://areciboscience.org/pipermail/asapmembers_areciboscience.org/attachments/20160605/0e5ef11e/attachment.html>