Equipment from the OASIS project at ESO’s Paranal Observatory

This instrument is designed to measure the emissions from hydroxyl particles (airglow) in the mid-atmosphere. Including a spectrometer and two cameras, this equipment comprises the OASIS project, which is operated by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) and will monitor the level of airglow on a given night to measure atmospheric turbulence. As this turbulence can be influenced by earthquakes, OASIS aims to show that airglow measurements could potentially provide early warnings for tsunamis. Telescopes must also account for the level of airglow on a given night, meaning this information may also prove useful to the nearby telescopes of ESO’s Paranal Observatory.