The Giant Dish From GoldenEye 007 Has Collapsed In Real Life

The giant satellite dish from the hit James Bond movie GoldenEye starring Pierce Brosnan – and of course its accompanying N64 classic GoldenEye 007 – has collapsed.

The news was revealed in a tweet by the National Science Foundation in a statement that read: “The instrument platform of the 305m telescope at Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico fell overnight. No injuries were reported. NSF is working with stakeholders to assess the situation.

Our top priority is maintaining safety. NSF will release more details when they are confirmed.” continued the NSF.

There have been two incidents this year involving snapped cables within the structure, which caused a huge amount of damage. The problems then led to the news that the Arecibo Observatory would be decommissioned.

The original incident of the snapped cable on the Arecibo Observatory created a massive 30-metre hole in the structure, which has a 305m-wide surface. Thankfully no injuries to individuals were reported.

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Before its collapse, the giant radio telescope and observatory had been in operation in Puerto Rico for 57 years, and as great as the 1995 James Bond movie was, I’ll always remember this location to be the epic showdown in the N64 classic with Alec Trevelyan played by Sean Bean.

Well I say “epic showdown,” but in truth this final battle involved you chasing a bullet-sponging Sean Bean around a satellite structure in the hope that you wouldn’t fall off and throw the N64 controller in total rage.

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This iconic structure is not just known as a location that featured in both the GoldenEye movie and video game respectively, but it also featured in the 1997 sci-fi movie Contact starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey.

Other than featuring in movies, it of course played its role in scientific discoveries such as an asteroid that flew near Earth in 1999. It also launched space probes to collect the first-ever asteroid dirt samples in 2018.

Goldeneye N64 art
Credit: Rare/Nintendo

So with that said, rest in pieces Arecibo Observatory, the world owes you a great debt.

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Featured Image Credit: Rare/Nintendo