ALMA at sunset

ALMA — the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array — resides high up in Chile's inhospitable Atacama desert region, where it observes the Universe at wavelengths in between the infra-red and radio regions of the spectrum. Here it is able to see the cold Universe, objects only a few degrees above absolute zero that include the very earliest stages of the formation of stars. It can also see far back into the history of the Universe, seeking out distant galaxies at early stages in their lifetimes.