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Credit & Copyright: European Southern Observatory
Explanation:
What is the largest telescope in the world? In the optical,
this title was
long held by the
Hale 200-inch,
and is presently held by the
Keck telescopes in
Hawaii. But an even larger optical telescope is being built.
Dubbed the
Very Large Telescope
(VLT), the European Southern Observatory
(ESO) is building four 8.2-meter mirrors in
Chile
which together will act as a single telescope with a mirror diameter of over
16-meters. The first of these
telescopes
should be completed in 1997, and all four should be completed
and working together sometime in the year 2000. The
VLT
will use
active
optics to create sub-arcsecond
resolution. This, combined with the
enormous light-gathering power, will allow astronomers to explore dim
objects in our
Galaxy and the
early universe.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: optical - VLT - telescope
Publications with words: optical - VLT - telescope
See also: