Zinc creep in cable spelter sockets brought down the Arecibo telescope in 2020
3 comments
- Points130
- Comments38
–Rank now
#8Peak rank
1Days on list
84Score · 7d
Nov 1, 2026First seen
Rank · 7 days
On Hacker News
- Points
- 130
- Comments
- 38
- Submitted by
- ohjeez
- Posted
- Oct 30, 2026
- Site
- maketecheasier.com
Story details from Hacker News ↗ · linked article on maketecheasier.com.
Trending history
Zinc creep in cable spelter sockets brought down the Arecibo telescope in 2020 was first seen on Hacker News · Front page on Nov 1, 2026. Since then it has appeared in 70 checks on 1 different day. Its best position was #8 of 30, reached on Nov 1, 16:52 UTC. It dropped off the list after Nov 1, 21:22 UTC.
Rank history
Position on Hacker News · Front page at every check (lower is better).
Last 14 days
Best rank per day (UTC).
8
Oct 26today
Metric history
Platform metric as reported by Hacker News.
From the discussion
A few top-level comments from Hacker News, shortened. Read the full thread on Hacker News.
The forensic report on the failure of the cable sockets is at https://www.thorntontomasetti.com/sites/default/files/2022-0.... Unlike the linked article this includes detailed diagrams and discussion explaining how these sockets worked and how they failed. My attempt at a quick summary: the Arecibo instruments were…
I did an apprenticeship in metalwork many..many years ago and I seem to recall the zinc is meant to be in compression. If a zinc plug pulled out, it was in shear. Sounds wrong to me. Vincenti: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_Engineers_Know_and_How_Th... Has a chapter on flush pop rivetting which discussed the loss…
In case you didn't see the video of collapse at the time (don't miss the drone footage which starts at 0:55): >Watch the Arecibo Observatory's catastrophic collapse! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u34uwFOCM-4
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Questions
Is Zinc creep in cable spelter sockets brought down the Arecibo telescope in 2020 trending on Hacker News right now?
Not at the moment. It was last on the list on Nov 1, 21:22 UTC, after 1 day of trending.
What is the highest rank Zinc creep in cable spelter sockets brought down the Arecibo telescope in 2020 reached?
#8 on Hacker News · Front page, on Nov 1, 16:52 UTC. Trendoday checks this list every 15 minutes.
How long has Zinc creep in cable spelter sockets brought down the Arecibo telescope in 2020 been trending?
It was first seen on Nov 1, 2026 and has been on the list on 1 day (70 checks) since.
How much discussion did it get on Hacker News?
130 points and 38 comments; submitted by ohjeez on Oct 30, 2026.