June 08, 2017 was a significant anniversary for VLBI
06/09/2017

In 1967, three groups -- one Canadian, another a collaboration between the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and Cornell University, and a third at MIT and Haystack Observatory -- were each working to achieve the first VLBI observation.

Fifty years ago today, on June 8, 1967, one of the first such experiments was successfully carried out between Haystack and NRAO (see attached figure). In 1971, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences awarded its Rumford Prize to members of all three groups. The MIT and Haystack recipients were J.A. Ball, A.H. Barrett, B.F. Burke, J.C. Carter, P.P. Crowther, G.M. Hyde, J.M. Moran, A.E.E. Rogers.