| Green Bank | |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Pushpin Map: | West Virginia |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within the state of West Virginia |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | West Virginia |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Pocahontas |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 3.276 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 3.276 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 141 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | auto |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Coordinates: | 38.42°N -79.8314°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Postal Code: | 24944 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
Green Bank is a census-designated place in Pocahontas County in West Virginia's Potomac Highlands inside the Allegheny Mountain Range. Green Bank is located along WV 28. Green Bank is home to the Green Bank Observatory and is also close to the Snowshoe Mountain ski resort. As of the 2020 census, its population was 141.[3]
The community was named for a green riverbank near the original town site.[4]
Green Bank is located within the National Radio Quiet Zone, which means that radio transmissions are heavily restricted by law.[5] This policy is enforced by a "radio policeman" who uses specialized equipment to detect signals from unauthorized electronics.[6] Green Bank is home to the Green Bank Telescope, the world's largest fully steerable radio telescope, which was operated by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) until September 30, 2016. Since October 1, 2016, the Telescope has been operated by the Green Bank Observatory, which is no longer part of the NRAO. It was at the Green Bank Site in 1961 that Frank Drake presented the Drake Equation, which was developed to provide an estimate of the total number of detectable extraterrestrial civilizations in the Milky Way galaxy.
As Green Bank is located within the National Radio Quiet Zone, many people who believe they suffer from electromagnetic hypersensitivity, a disputed medical condition, are finding new homes within its borders.[7] Escape from cellular radiation is the main attraction to Green Bank for these people., around 30 people had moved to Green Bank to escape the supposed effects of electromagnetic hypersensitivity.[8]