Arecibo
Municipio Autónomo de Arecibo | |
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Nicknames: "La Villa del Capitán Correa", "Muy Leal", "Ciudad del Cetí", "Diamante del Norte" (Diamond of the North) | |
Anthem: "Arecibo" | |
Coordinates: 18°22′30″N 66°37′30″W / 18.37500°N 66.62500°W | |
Sovereign state | United States |
Commonwealth | Puerto Rico |
First settled | 1556 |
Founded | May 1, 1616 |
Named for | Arasibo |
Barrios | |
Government | |
• Mayor | Carlos (Tito) Ramírez Irizarry (PPD) |
• Senatorial dist. | 3 – Arecibo |
• Representative dist. | 13, 14 |
Area | |
• Municipality | 171.22 sq mi (443.5 km2) |
• Land | 125.99 sq mi (326.3 km2) |
• Water | 45.23 sq mi (117.1 km2) |
Elevation | 23 ft (7 m) |
Population (2020)[2] | |
• Municipality | 87,754 |
• Rank | 7th in Puerto Rico |
• Density | 510/sq mi (200/km2) |
• Metro | 182,705 (MSA) |
• Racial groups (2010 Census)[3] | 85.5% White 5.1% Black 0.5% American Indian 0.2% Asian 8.6% mixed or other |
Demonym | Arecibeños |
Time zone | UTC−4 (AST) |
ZIP Codes | 00612, 00613, 00614, 00616, 00652, 00688 |
Area code | 787/939 |
Major routes | |
Arecibo (/ˌærəˈsiːboʊ/; Spanish pronunciation: [aɾeˈsiβo]) is a city and municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado and Ciales; east of Hatillo; and west of Barceloneta and Florida. It is about 50 miles (80 km) west of San Juan, the capital city. Arecibo is the largest municipality in Puerto Rico by area, and it is the core city of the Arecibo Metropolitan Statistical Area and part of the greater San Juan–Bayamón, PR Combined Statistical Area.[4] It is spread over 18 barrios and Arecibo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). Its population in 2020 was 87,754.
The Arecibo Observatory, which housed the Arecibo telescope, the world's largest radio telescope until July 2016, is located in the municipality. The Arecibo telescope collapsed on December 1, 2020. Arecibo is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arecibo.