Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory

The Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory (FCRAO) is a cooperative project involving four small private colleges and the state-supported University of Massachusetts. Its equipment includes four 120-ft-diameter spherical antennas for observations at meter wavelengths and a 45-ft paraboloidal dish in a radome for millimeter wavelengths. The location and construction of the FCRAO are described along with the operation of the 120-ft antennas. Characteristics of the maser receivers, radome, and antenna for millimeter observations are reviewed, and student participation in both construction and observations is discussed. Current and future observing programs noted include daily monitoring of pulsar emissions, radio measurements of pulsar proper motions, and studies of the small-scale structure of molecular clouds, molecular emissions from comets and planetary atmospheres, and the final collapse phase of protostars.