Science News Roundup: China launches gigantic telescope in hunt for life beyond earth

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

China launches gigantic telescope in hunt for life beyond earth

China on Saturday officially opened operations of the world's largest radio telescope, which it will use for space research and help in the hunt for extraterrestrial life, the official Xinhua news agency reported. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope, or FAST, is the size of 30 football fields and has been hewed out of a mountain in the southwestern province of Guizhou. It is also known by the name "Sky Eye" in China.

(With inputs from agencies.)