My visit to the Green Bank Telescope began as we neared the valley.From miles around the enormous structure of the telescope could be seen.As the largest fully-steerable single aperture antenna in the world, it is visible for three to five miles before actually arriving at the telescope’s visitor’s center.I thought it odd that as we came closer to the telescope our radio reception began to fade to static.

Once we arrived at the visitor’s center, we were amazed by all the exhibits, programs and other things offered to visitors.After wandering around the gift shop and examining some of the smaller exhibits, we joined a small group of fellow visitors in a seminar about the history and function of the Green Bank Telescope.

Our tour guide explained many interesting facts about the Green Bank Telescope and its surrounding facility.He explained that the area around the telescope is a “quiet zone”, in which all cell phone, radio and television signals are jammed so that the telescope can better function.The only television signal available to those living near the Observatory is from satellite!If you plan to visit the Green Bank Telescope, leave your cell phone behind.Any electronic equipment such as cell phones, beepers or CB radios that rely on radio transmission to function properly are useless in the area surrounding the telescope.

After listening to the short seminar, our guide led us out of the visitor’s center and on board a waiting bus.As we toured the grounds of the observatory, our guide told us of the Green Bank Telescope as well as the other telescopes, both historic and still in use, placed around the facility.He gave us information concerning who was using the telescopes, and what was being studied with them.He fielded questions regarding all aspects of the telescopes, and gave us ample opportunity to snap photographs.The tour took about an hour and a half, and was full of interesting facts about our solar system and beyond.

One of the best parts of touring the National Radio Astronomy Observatory’s Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope is the price:It’s free!Access to the exhibits, the seminar and the tour are all free, and our tour group was filled with people young and old.There is truly something for everyone interested in space at the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope.

Other amenities available at the observatory include a small restaurant, the Starlight Café, which serves an a la carte menu as well as prepared boxed lunches.The Galaxy Gift Shop has a wide assortment of t-shirts, jewelry, posters and other observatory-related articles for sale.If you would rather explore the observatory facility on your own and not take advantage of the free guided tour, visitors may walk or bike through the telescope array, but driving is strictly prohibited.

An interesting, enjoyable and educational side trip, the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope in Green Bank, West Virginia can add a cosmic aspect to a trip through “Wild, Wonderful, West Virginia”.