This statement ignores the fact that the radar capability put Arecibo in it's on class when it comes to Planetary Astronomy. The capability to study near-Earth

This statement ignores the fact that the radar capability put Arecibo in it's on class when it comes to Planetary Astronomy. The capability to study near-Earth Asteroids and perform radar observations of the Moon and other large objects in our Solar System has definitely been diminished with this loss. Even Goldstone, the next most powerful radar telescope, is 20x less sensitive. Not to mention the pairing of Arecibo's radars with the LIDAR system and it's HF Ionospheric heater system. I don't think saying Arecibo was not the only observatory in it's class is being rather disingenuous.