Wide-angle view of the ESO 3.6-metre telescope

This impressive wide-angle 360 panorama view was taken inside the dome of the ESO 3.6-metre telescope at the La Silla Observatory. The 3.6-metre telescope was inaugurated in 1976, when it was one of the largest telescopes of its time. It has an equatorial mount and the dome is 30 metres in diameter. This telescope currently works with the HARPS spectrograph, the world´s most precise instrument for the detection of exoplanets by the radial velocity method. The white tube which goes around the perimeter on the left is part of the air conditioning system. The temperature inside the telescope needs to be maintained at the same level expected for the night, in order to avoid turbulence. The La Silla Observatory, located 600 km north of Santiago de Chile and at an altitude of 2400 metres, has been an ESO stronghold since the 1960s.

An amazing interactive virtual tour is available here