World's Largest Telescope Capable of Seeing Life on Other Planets
- 10 years ago
The Cerro Armazones mountain in Chile is being excavated to make way for what’s going to be the largest telescope in the world.
Cerro Armazones mountain in the Chilean Coast Range is being excavated to make way for what’s going to be the largest telescope in the world.
Known as the European Extremely Large Telescope, its almost 130 foot mirror will be able to see further back in the history of the universe and examine exo-planets in far greater detail than any other telescope in the world.
Simone Zaggia, from the INAF Astronomical Observatory of Padova is quoted as saying: “At present, our biggest telescopes can only spot really big exoplanets, giants that are as big as Jupiter and Saturn. But we really want to know about the smaller worlds that make up the solar systems in our galaxy.”
To prepare for the construction of the European Extremely Large Telescope, developers will blast the top off of the ten thousand foot mountain, to create a plateau that is suitable for building on.
The European Southern Observatory, which is one of the most sophisticated observatories in the world is located nearby in the remote and inhospitable mountain range of Chile.
Experts chose this location because the air is dry and clear, which means that the view of space is unobstructed and the advanced technological instruments used for observing space can function at their highest potential.
Cerro Armazones mountain in the Chilean Coast Range is being excavated to make way for what’s going to be the largest telescope in the world.
Known as the European Extremely Large Telescope, its almost 130 foot mirror will be able to see further back in the history of the universe and examine exo-planets in far greater detail than any other telescope in the world.
Simone Zaggia, from the INAF Astronomical Observatory of Padova is quoted as saying: “At present, our biggest telescopes can only spot really big exoplanets, giants that are as big as Jupiter and Saturn. But we really want to know about the smaller worlds that make up the solar systems in our galaxy.”
To prepare for the construction of the European Extremely Large Telescope, developers will blast the top off of the ten thousand foot mountain, to create a plateau that is suitable for building on.
The European Southern Observatory, which is one of the most sophisticated observatories in the world is located nearby in the remote and inhospitable mountain range of Chile.
Experts chose this location because the air is dry and clear, which means that the view of space is unobstructed and the advanced technological instruments used for observing space can function at their highest potential.