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20. juli 2009: This new artist’s impression shows the future Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), which is currently being planned by ESO. This revolutionary new ground-based telescope will be the largest optical/near-infrared telescope ever conceived, and will serve as “the world’s biggest eye on the sky”. The present concept is for a telescope with a mirror 39 metres in diameter, able to capture images of the sky about a tenth the size of the full Moon. The telescope will contain five mirrors, a novel configuration that results in exceptional image quality. The largest (primary) mirror will consist of almost 800 segments, each 1.4 metres wide but only 50 mm thick. The optical system’s design also calls for an immense secondary mirror measuring 4.2 metres in diameter, which is almost as large as the biggest primary mirrors used in today’s telescopes. With the start of operations planned early in the next decade, the ELT will ...

13. juli 2009: This photograph from early 2009 shows the VISTA telescope, which is currently completing tests in its dome at Paranal in Chile. VISTA, along with the VST (VLT Survey Telescope) is one of two ESO survey telescopes about to start work surveying the southern skies. VISTA has a main mirror that is 4.1 metres across and is by far the largest telescope in the world dedicated to surveying the sky at near-infrared wavelengths. It was conceived and developed by the United Kingdom and became an in-kind contribution to ESO as part of the UK's accession agreement, with the subscription paid by the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). The main mirror is the most highly curved mirror of its size ever made and at the heart of VISTA is a 3-tonne camera containing 16 special detectors sensitive to infrared light with a combined total of 67 megapixels. It will have ...

6. juli 2009: Excavation work has just begun for construction of the Santiago Central Office (SCO) building of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) project. The building, in the Vitacura district of the Chilean capital, will be adjacent to the Santiago offices of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), which is the European partner in the global ALMA project, and which is responsible for constructing the ALMA SCO. The SCO building will have a size of almost 7,000 square metres over two storeys, with underground parking for 130 cars, which will allow some of the existing above-ground parking spaces to be moved underground and replaced with green areas. For the construction, eleven old trees were moved to a new location at ESO, in a meticulous operation led by experts. ALMA, the largest astronomical project in existence, is a revolutionary astronomical telescope, comprising an array of 66 giant 12-metre and 7-metre diameter antennas observing at ...

29. juni 2009: The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is the largest astronomical project in existence. It is a revolutionary astronomical telescope, comprising an array of 66 giant 12-metre and 7-metre diameter antennas observing at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths. It is being built on the breathtaking location of the Chajnantor plateau, at 5000 metres altitude in the Chilean Andes, and will start scientific observations in 2011. In this artist’s rendering, the ALMA array is seen on the Chajnantor plateau in an extended configuration. The antennas, which each weigh over 100 tons, can be moved to different positions with custom-built transporter vehicles in order to reconfigure the array. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust as well as the relic radiation of the Big Bang. It will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. ALMA, an international astronomy facility, is ...

22. juni 2009: This Quicktime interactive panorama movie shows the night sky over ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile and reveals its incredible richness and beauty. To launch the panorama please click the link on the right under QuickTime VR. To navigate this dual landscape and starscape, left-click on the image and continue pressing the button as you drag the mouse in the direction you would like to see. To zoom in and out, press "shift" or "ctrl". Moving towards the right, the panorama shows the Milky Way band blazing over the horizon. Ascending the mountain that comes into view, one sees ESO’s Very Large Telescope array and the red beam of its Laser Guide Star. Still further right, the VISTA peak rises, with the lingering Gegenschein aglow above it. Other sights in the sky over Paranal include the Andromeda Galaxy, the Pleiades and the Hyades star clusters, the constellation of Orion, and the ...

15. juni 2009: NGC 2613 is a rarely imaged spiral galaxy located about 60 million light years away towards the southern constellation of Pyxis (the mariner’s compass). It is thought to resemble our own Milky Way. This image is based on data acquired with the 1.5-metre Danish telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile, through three filters (B, V, R).

8. juni 2009: Her ses tre af de fire Unit Teleskoper, som udgør ESOs Very Large Telescope (VLT), klar til endnu en ekstraordinær observationsnat på toppen af ​​Cerro Paranal i Chile. Før hver nat går ingeniørerne i gang med en stribe aktiviteter for at optimere flagskibsfaciliteten i europæisk astronomi. VLT er verdens mest avancerede optiske instrument, der består af fire Unit Teleskoper med hovedspejle med en diameter på 8,2 meter og fire bevægelige 1,8-meter hjælpe-teleskoper. Et af hjælpeteleskoperne ses til højre i billedet.

2. juni 2009: I en afstand på omkring 13 millioner lysår i det sydlige stjernebillede Centaurus, er Centaurus A vores nærmeste gigantgalakse og som sådan, et af ​​de bedst undersøgte objekter på den sydlige himmel. Det er en elliptisk galakse, der er midt i en kollision med en nabogalakse, hvilket resulterer i områder med intens stjernedannelse og gør den til et af de mest spektakulære objekter på himlen. Centaurus A er vært for en meget aktiv og kraftigt lysende central region, forårsaget af tilstedeværelsen af ​​et supermassivt sort hul med en masse på omkring 100 millioner solmasser, og er kilde til stærk radio og røntgenstråling. Tykke støvlag skjuler næsten galaksens centrum helt. Dette billede er baseret på data indhentet med det danske 1,54 meter teleskop på ESO La Silla-observatoriet i Chile, gennem tre filtre (B, V, R).

25. maj 2009: The Moon is normally much too large and bright to be a target for the 8.2-metre Unit Telescopes (UTs) that make up ESO’s Very Large Telescope, whose sheer power is best reserved for much fainter and much more distant astronomical objects, such as exoplanets or exploding stars located at the edge of the visible Universe. But back in 2002, one of the UTs was not yet equipped with an instrument at one of its Nasmyth platforms (located on the side of the telescope), and astronomers and engineers could have an unusual view of our natural satellite. In this case, the Moon's image was projected onto a sandblasted glass plate. Since then, the Very Large Telescope has been equipped with no less than 14 instruments, including three for interferometry, making it truly the world’s most advanced observatory.

18. maj 2009: Located about 15 million light-years away towards the Hydra (the sea serpent) constellation, Messier 83 is a nearby face-on barred spiral with a classic grand design form. It is the main member of a small galactic group including NGC 5253 and about 9 dwarf galaxies. Messier 83 stretches over 40,000 light-years, making it roughly 2.5 times smaller than our own Milky Way. However, in some respects, Messier 83 is quite similar to our own galaxy. Both the Milky Way and Messier 83 possess a bar across their galactic nucleus, the dense spherical conglomeration of stars seen at the centre of the galaxies. Messier 83 has been a prolific producer of supernovae, with six observed in the past century. This is indicative of an exceptionally high rate of star formation coinciding with its classification as a starburst galaxy. Despite its symmetric appearance, the central 1,000 light-years of the galaxy shows an ...

11. maj 2009: View from inside the main building of the 2,900 metre high ALMA Operation Support Facility. Three antennas currently being tested are seen outside. On 30 April, scientists and engineers working on the world’s largest astronomical project, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), have achieved the successful linking of two ALMA astronomical antennas, synchronised with a precision of one millionth of a millionth of a second, to observe the planet Mars. The observations demonstrate ALMA’s full hardware functionality and connectivity. When completed around 2012, ALMA will comprise an array of 66 giant 12-metre and 7-metre diameter antennas observing at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths.Read more about this milestone in eso0918.

4. maj 2009: Dette luftfoto af ESOs Very Large Telescope på toppen af det 2600-meter høje Cerro Paranal i den chilenske Atacamaørken viser de forskellige stationer for de mobile hjælpeteleskoper.De største strukturer er bygningerne til VLTs fire 8.2 meter Unit teleskoper.I midten ligger VLT Interferometer (VLTI) laboratoriet.I modsætning til andre store astronomiske teleskoper, blev VLT designet fra starten med brug af interferometri som et vigtigt mål.VLTI kombinerer lys fanget af to eller tre 8,2-meter VLT Unit teleskoper, hvilket dramatisk øger den rumlige opløsning og viser fine detaljer i et stort udvalg af himmellegemer.Men det meste af tiden anvendes de store teleskoper hver for sig til andre forskningsformål.De er derfor kun tilgængelig for interferometriske observationer i et begrænset antal nætter hvert år.For at kunne udnytte VLTI hver nat og for at opnå det fulde potentiale af dette unikke instrument, blev nogle mindre dedikerede 1,8-meter teleskoper inkluderede i det samlede VLT koncept.Disse teleskoper, kendt som ...

24. april 2009: Den forvredne galakse NGC 2442, også kendt som Kødkroggalaksen, ligger omkring 50 millioner lysår væk i konstellationen af ​​Volans (Flyvefisken). Galaksen er 75.000 lysår bred og har to støvede spiralarme der strækker sig fra en udtalt central stav, der giver den et kroglignende udseende og dermed sit kaldenavn. Galaksens forvrængede form er sandsynligvis resultatet af et tæt møde med en mindre usynlig galakse. Dette billede er baseret på data fra det danske 1,54-meter teleskop på ESOs La Silla Observatorium i Chile gennem tre filtre (B: 250s, V: 187s, R: 150s).

20. april 2009: Today, 20 April 2009, was the opening of the European Week of Astronomy and Space Science (JENAM 2009), which takes place at the University of Hertfordshire, UK. Lord Drayson, the British Minister of State for Science and Innovation, addressed the many attendees to this conference, expressing the importance of astronomy and space science for today’s society. He also visited the ESO stand where he was introduced to ESO’s flagship astronomical facility, the Very Large Telescope, by Tim de Zeeuw, the ESO Director General, and Patrick Roche, UK member of the ESO Council. Tim de Zeeuw also explained about the Extremely Large Telescope, a project which the minister showed great interest for.

14. april 2009: Dette flotte luftfoto af ESOs Very Large Telescope (VLT) demonstrerer til fuldekvaliteten af Cerro Paranal som observationssted. I forgrunden ses Paranal observatoriet, som er placeret i 2600 meters højde over havets overflade på bjerget Paranal i Chile. I baggrunden ses den 6720 meter høje vulkan Llullaillaco med sne på toppen. Den befinder sig ikke mindre end 190 km længere mod øst på grænsen til Argentina. Dette billede er et vidnesbyrd om den fabelagtige kvalitet af luften og de ideelle betingelser for astronomisk observation på dette fjerne sted. På billedet er det let at finde kuplerne på de fire gigantiske 8.2 meter unit-teleskoper der kendetegner VLT. I forgrunden ses kontrolbygningen, som hver nat er arbejdsplads for de astronomer, som udfører observationerne. Dette foto er taget for flere år siden, hvorfor hjælpeteleskoperne ikke er med på billedet. Ligeledes er VST Survey Telescope, bygget fra 2007-2011, heller ikke med på billedet.

1. april 2009: På samme måde som vores egen Mælkevej er Messier 100 en stor spiralgalakse, der har en indviklet struktur med en lys kerne og to fremtrædende arme. Galaksen har mange unge varme tunge stjerner og yderst, varme områder af ioniseret hydrogen. To mindre arme ses ud fra midten, strækkende sig mod de større spiralarm. Galaksen, der ligger 60 millioner lysår væk, er lidt større end Mælkevejen og har en diameter på omkring 120.000 lysår. En supernova blev opdaget i M100 den 4. februar 2006. Denne 5. supernova, der er blevet fundet i M100 siden år 1900 blev navngivet SN 2006X. Dette billede er sammensat af data fra det danske 1,54-meter teleskop ved ESO La Silla Observatoriet i Chile gennem tre filtre (B: 1390s, V: 480s, R: 245s). Supernovaen er den lyse af de to stjerner nederst til højre for galaksens centrum.

30. marts 2009: Night view of the Paranal Observatory, obtained on 21 March 2009. The Residencia — the place where staff can eat and sleep — is visible in the foreground, while one can distinguish the 8.2-metre Unit Telescopes of ESO’s Very Large Telescope in the higher background. Yepun, the Unit Telescope no. 4, is seen using the laser guide star to assist the adaptive optics instruments on the VLT. This allows astronomers to obtain images free from the blurring effect of the atmosphere, regardless of the brightness and location on the sky of the observed target. The image shows the great value of the dark night sky above Paranal. The band of the Milky Way is running through the image vertically. Orion and the Orion Nebula can be seen in the upper left corner along with a number of other interesting deep-sky objects in Auriga, the Charioteer. Tremendous efforts are being put ...

23. marts 2009: Located inside the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) – one of our closest galaxies – in what some describe as a frightening sight, the Tarantula nebula is worth looking at in detail. Also known as 30 Doradus or NGC 2070, the nebula owes its name to the arrangement of its bright patches that somewhat resemble the legs of a tarantula. Taking the name of one of the biggest spiders on Earth is very fitting in view of the gigantic proportions of this celestial nebula — it measures nearly 1,000 light years across ! Its proximity, the favourable inclination of the LMC, and the absence of intervening dust make this nebula one of the best laboratories to better understand the formation of massive stars. This spectacular nebula is energised by an exceptionally high concentration of massive stars, often referred to as super star clusters. This image is based on data acquired with ...

9. marts 2009: The 40-metre-class primary mirror of the European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) will be composed of 984 individual segments, which must be aligned with incredible precision. The position of the individual hexagonal mirrors needs to be controlled with nanometre precision (1 nanometre is 1 millionth of a mm). This can only be achieved with the help of new technologies and a prototype component for this high-tech alignment of segmented mirrors is seen in this image. The so-called Active Phasing Experiment achieved its First Light during the night of 6 December 2008 on the visitor focus of Melipal, one of the 8.2 m Unit Telescopes of ESO’s Very Large Telescope at Paranal. Made in collaboration with several European partners, the current active segmented mirror is composed of 61 hexagonal segments. You can move around the experiment in this Quicktime VTR animation.

2. marts 2009: One of most famous spiral galaxies is Messier 104, widely known as the "Sombrero" (the Mexican hat) because of its particular shape. It is located towards the constellation Virgo (the ‘virgin’), at a distance of about 30 million light-years and is the 104th object in the famous catalogue of deep-sky objects by French astronomer Charles Messier (1730 - 1817).This luminous and massive galaxy has a total mass of about 800 billion suns, and is notable for its dominant nuclear bulge, composed mainly of mature stars, and its nearly edge-on disc composed of stars, gas, and dust. The complexity of this dust is apparent directly in front of the bright nucleus, but is also evident in the dark absorbing lanes throughout the disc. A large number of small, diffuse objects can be seen as a swarm in the halo of Messier 104. Most of these are globular clusters, similar to those ...