Extremely Large Telescopes are considered worldwide as one of the highest priorities in ground-based astronomy. They will vastly advance astrophysical knowledge, allowing detailed studies of subjects including planets around other stars, the first objects in the Universe, super-massive black holes, and the nature and distribution of the dark matter and dark energy which dominate the Universe.
At a recent meeting of the European Southern Observatory's main governing body, the Council, the go-ahead was given for the construction of the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT)
An artists impression is given above.
It will be a 39-metre aperture optical and infrared telescope sited on Cerro Armazones in the Chilean Atacama Desert and has been described as "the world’s largest eye on the sky."
The E-ELT will tackle the biggest scientific challenges of our time, and aim for a number of notable firsts, including tracking down Earth-like planets around other stars in the "habitable zones" where life could exist.
It will also perform "stellar archaeology" in nearby galaxies, as well as make fundamental contributions to cosmology by measuring the properties of the first stars and galaxies and probing the nature of dark matter and dark energy.
At a recent meeting of the European Southern Observatory's main governing body, the Council, the go-ahead was given for the construction of the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT)
An artists impression is given above.
It will be a 39-metre aperture optical and infrared telescope sited on Cerro Armazones in the Chilean Atacama Desert and has been described as "the world’s largest eye on the sky."
The E-ELT will tackle the biggest scientific challenges of our time, and aim for a number of notable firsts, including tracking down Earth-like planets around other stars in the "habitable zones" where life could exist.
It will also perform "stellar archaeology" in nearby galaxies, as well as make fundamental contributions to cosmology by measuring the properties of the first stars and galaxies and probing the nature of dark matter and dark energy.