Inside the VLT

Inside one of the 8.2-m Unit Telescopes of the Very Large Telescope (VLT) at ESO's Cerro Paranal observing site. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors 8.2-m in diameter and four movable 1.8-m diameter Auxiliary Telescopes. The telescopes can work together, in groups of two or three, to form a giant interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. Located in the Atacama Desert of Chile, Paranal is over 2600 metres above sea level, providing incredibly dry, dark viewing conditions.

Credit:

Iztok Boncina/ESO

http://www.eso.org/sci/facilities/alma/

About the Image

Id:ib-paranal02
Type:Photographic
Release date:6 April 2010, 16:09
Size:2592 x 3888 px

About the Object

Name:Very Large Telescope
Type:Unspecified : Technology : Observatory : Telescope
Category:Paranal

Image Formats

Large JPEG
3.2 MB
Screensize JPEG
469.1 KB

Zoomable


Wallpapers

1024x768
304.7 KB
1280x1024
485.5 KB
1600x1200
694.8 KB
1920x1200
826.5 KB
2048x1536
1.1 MB