The 33-year-old radio telescope facility at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, is being upgraded. For many years the workhorse of radio astronomy, Arecibo has played a very important role in improving our understanding of the cosmos. The upgradation involves putting a huge aluminium shell at the centre of a 90-metre arm which itself is sitting 137 metres above a huge dish. This contains two reflectors together with transmitting and receiving equipment which will greatly extend the observatory's sensitivity and frequency range. ( Science , Vol. 272, No 5268).