Announcement
ESO and Chile sign agreement to foster scientific and technological cooperation on the ELT
15 December 2021
Today, ESO and the Government of Chile, through its National Research and Development Agency (ANID), signed an agreement on scientific and technological cooperation for the construction and operation of ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope (ESO’s ELT), which will be the biggest optical/infrared telescope in the world.
The agreement, signed at ESO offices in Santiago by Xavier Barcons, ESO Director General, and Aisén Etcheverry, National Director of ANID, will fund ELT-related projects in engineering, computing, and other areas proposed by Chilean academic institutes. These projects will allow the training, for at least a decade, of highly specialised engineers, technicians and scientists in Chile.
“With the signature of this agreement with ANID, we are breaking new ground in our long-standing cooperation with Chile. We will now jointly fund projects of interest to both Chile and ESO around the largest optical telescope ever built. Through this programme we will further the engagement between ESO and Chile, with an important focus on the region of Antofagasta,” said Xavier Barcons, ESO Director General.
“This agreement represents a new opportunity to strengthen collaboration between ESO and ANID for the benefit of the scientific community as a whole. The presence of observatories in Chile allows for the development not only of astronomy but also of other disciplines such as engineering, optics among others,” said Aisén Etcheverry, National Director of ANID.
The agreement will also facilitate the training of engineers, technicians and scientists of Chilean institutions at ESO Member States institutes and it will bring experts from these academic centres, participating in the ELT development, to Chilean universities.
Annually ESO will fund up to two positions, each one of 2-years duration, at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile for scientists, engineers and technicians of Chilean institutions for ELT-related projects. To foster the development of advanced human capital locally, an applicant from an institution in the Region of Antofagasta will preferentially fill one of the positions.
“This agreement will allow us to cooperate jointly with Chile in scientific and technological development. Moreover, it will encourage a new generation of specialists who will work in the most complex astronomical systems. Many of them will come from the Region of Antofagasta, giving a very important step in our collaborative work with Chile, but above all, with the regions localities where our infrastructure is installed,” said Luis Chavarría, ESO Representative in Chile during the ceremony.
“Our cooperation with ESO leads us to continue pushing the boundaries of science, and allows us to locate, in Chile, the forthcoming largest optical telescope in the world. The “ELT” is the most recent project that portrays ESO’s participation in Chile, along with ALMA, La Silla and Paranal, the most productive astronomical observatories on the planet, while strengthening the identity of our country, linked to astronomical observation”, said Carolina Valdivia, Undersecretary of the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
ESO and ANID will support the agreement with matching funds. The entities will invest up to €900k per year for at least a decade and will work together defining common areas. ANID will organise an annual call of proposals to define the areas of interest.
“This is a great opportunity to continue fostering the local astronomical community and to promote talent development and the generation of knowledge and skills in areas such as engineering and data science. This milestone is possible thanks to our comparative advantages and the great opportunity to have cutting-edge technology in the north of Chile that, in addition to strengthening global and national scientific research, will open new possibilities for innovation and entrepreneurship for the development of the region and our economy," said Andrés Couve, Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation.
ESO’s ELT will be the largest optical/infrared telescope in the world, collecting more light than all of the existing 8–10-metre class telescopes on the planet combined. With its 39-metre main mirror and unique five-mirror design, coupled with state-of-the-art technology to correct for atmospheric distortions, it will provide images 15 times sharper than those from the Hubble Space Telescope.
Set to start observing the skies from Chile’s Atacama Desert in 2027, the telescope will tackle the biggest astronomical challenges of our time and make yet unimaginable discoveries.
Links
Contacts
Francisco Rodríguez
ESO Press Officer Chile
Santiago, Chile
Email: francisco.rodriguez@eso.org
About the Announcement
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