The Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope is the largest fully steerable telescope in the world. Its weight of 17 million pounds and height of 485 feet make it the largest moving structure in the land as well.

The telescope?s overall structure is a wheel-and-track design allowing it to view the entirety of the sky above 5 degrees elevation. It also veers out from the conventional telescope designs. The Greenbank telescope?s aperture is unblocked. This means that incoming radiation is able to meet the surface directly. It widens the useful area of the telescope as reflection and diffraction are eliminated. The design?s complexity can also be attributed to the surface?s 2,004 panels that are mounted unto the corners on actuators. This actually makes the adjustment of the surface shape easier.

With the telescope?s impressive profile, it is fast becoming one of the country? top tourist destinations and attractions.