Press Release
Recent Developments Around the ESO Very Large Telescope
20 December 1993
The ESO Council [1] took a number of important decisions in its December 1993 meeting. In particular, it unanimously agreed to proceed with the modified plan for the construction of the ESO Very Large Telescope at the Paranal mountain in Chile.
This plan has been prepared by the organisation during the past year, i.e. at about half-time of this enormous project, which was approved by Council in December 1987 [2]. During the intervening years, quite a few, new technologies have appeared which, if installed, would increase the performance of the VLT. At the same time, the future users of this giant telescope, the European astronomers, have frequently expressed a desire to expand its instrumental capabilities, leading to several concepts for further enhancements of the original project. The VLT is the largest project ever undertaken in ground-based astronomy, both in terms of mirror area (more than 200 m2) and financial volume (now approaching 500 million DEM).
The ESO Director General, Professor Riccardo Giacconi, expresses satisfaction about Council's decision: "Knowing that we are fully backed by all of the ESO member states for the execution of this unique astronomy project is decisive for the ultimate success. In view of the great complexity of the VLT, the present postponement of certain parts of the project is not unreasonable -the most important is that European astronomers can look forward with confidence to gain access to their new super-telescope within a foreseeable time."
The VLT Project
In a special meeting in early October 1993, Council had already expressed its approval of some of the most important aspects of the modified plan, including the content, schedule and staff. However, certain financial aspects led to some concern being expressed by the ESO Finance Committee in its November 1993 meeting, and a number of additional modifications were introduced in order to reduce further the spending profile of the VLT project during the next years. This revised plan has no\v been approved by the ESO Council.
The main implications are, that while the four 8.2-metre unit telescopes will be built as originally foreseen with the appropriate instrumentation, it has been decided to postpone the implementation of the VLT Interferometer, the VLT Interferometer Sub-Array (VISA), the Coude Train and the associated adaptive optics.
In consultation with the Scientific Technical Committee, ESO is now seeking the optimal solution for introduction of adaptive optics at the other foci at the unit telescopes. It is also the expressed intention to reintroduce full Coude and interferometric capabilities at the earliest possible moment.
VLT Schedule
The adoption of the modified VLT plan now foresees that the construction at Paranal of the VLT telescope buildings and the necessary infrastructure will begin within one or two months. All of the originally planned tunnels, laboratory space, etc.. including those necessary for the functions whose execution is being postponed, will be constructed.
It is expected that the "first light" for the first 8.2-metre unit telescope will happen in early 1997. The other three will follow in the years thereafter.
New appointments
Council elected Dr. Peter Creola (Switzerland) as its President and Dr. Catherine Cesarsky (France) as Vice-President, both for the next three-year period (1994 -1996).
Council also appointed Dr. Jacqueline Bergeron as ESO Associate Director for Science. Dr. Bergeron is presently at the Paris Observatory, France, and is also General Secretary of the International Astronomical Union. She will take up her new duties at the ESO Headquarters in Garching in the course of 1994.
Council moreover appointed Professor Piero Benvenuti as Head of the newly created Data Management Division for an initial period of one year. Professor Benvenuti will continue as Head of the ESO/ESA European Coordinating Facility for the Space Telescope, located since the establishment in 1986 at the ESO Headquarters.
Notes
[1] The Council of ESO consists of two representatives from each of the eight member states. It is the highesl. authority of the organisation and normally meets twice a year.
[2] See ESO Press Release eso8717 of 8 December 1987.
Contacts
Richard West
ESO EPR Dept
Garching, Germany
Email: information@eso.org
About the Release
| Release No.: | eso9313 |
| Legacy ID: | PR 09/93 |
| Name: | Cerro Paranal, Very Large Telescope |
| Type: | Unspecified : Technology : Observatory |
| Facility: | Very Large Telescope |
Images
Our use of Cookies
We use cookies that are essential for accessing our websites and using our services. We also use cookies to analyse, measure and improve our websites’ performance, to enable content sharing via social media and to display media content hosted on third-party platforms.
ESO Cookies Policy
The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) is the pre-eminent intergovernmental science and technology organisation in astronomy. It carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities for astronomy.
This Cookies Policy is intended to provide clarity by outlining the cookies used on the ESO public websites, their functions, the options you have for controlling them, and the ways you can contact us for additional details.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of data stored on your device by websites you visit. They serve various purposes, such as remembering login credentials and preferences and enhance your browsing experience.
Categories of cookies we use
Essential cookies (always active): These cookies are strictly necessary for the proper functioning of our website. Without these cookies, the website cannot operate correctly, and certain services, such as logging in or accessing secure areas, may not be available; because they are essential for the website’s operation, they cannot be disabled.
Functional Cookies: These cookies enhance your browsing experience by enabling additional features and personalization, such as remembering your preferences and settings. While not strictly necessary for the website to function, they improve usability and convenience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent.
Analytics cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors interact with our website, such as which pages are visited most often and how users navigate the site. This data helps us improve website performance, optimize content, and enhance the user experience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent. We use the following analytics cookies.
Matomo Cookies:
This website uses Matomo (formerly Piwik), an open source software which enables the statistical analysis of website visits. Matomo uses cookies (text files) which are saved on your computer and which allow us to analyze how you use our website. The website user information generated by the cookies will only be saved on the servers of our IT Department. We use this information to analyze www.eso.org visits and to prepare reports on website activities. These data will not be disclosed to third parties.
On behalf of ESO, Matomo will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage.
Matomo cookies settings:
Additional Third-party cookies on ESO websites: some of our pages display content from external providers, e.g. YouTube.
Such third-party services are outside of ESO control and may, at any time, change their terms of service, use of cookies, etc.
YouTube: Some videos on the ESO website are embedded from ESO’s official YouTube channel. We have enabled YouTube’s privacy-enhanced mode, meaning that no cookies are set unless the user actively clicks on the video to play it. Additionally, in this mode, YouTube does not store any personally identifiable cookie data for embedded video playbacks. For more details, please refer to YouTube’s embedding videos information page.
Cookies can also be classified based on the following elements.
Regarding the domain, there are:
- First-party cookies, set by the website you are currently visiting. They are stored by the same domain that you are browsing and are used to enhance your experience on that site;
- Third-party cookies, set by a domain other than the one you are currently visiting.
As for their duration, cookies can be:
- Browser-session cookies, which are deleted when the user closes the browser;
- Stored cookies, which stay on the user's device for a predetermined period of time.
How to manage cookies
Cookie settings: You can modify your cookie choices for the ESO webpages at any time by clicking on the link Cookie settings at the bottom of any page.
In your browser: If you wish to delete cookies or instruct your browser to delete or block cookies by default, please visit the help pages of your browser:
Please be aware that if you delete or decline cookies, certain functionalities of our website may be not be available and your browsing experience may be affected.
You can set most browsers to prevent any cookies being placed on your device, but you may then have to manually adjust some preferences every time you visit a site/page. And some services and functionalities may not work properly at all (e.g. profile logging-in, shop check out).
Updates to the ESO Cookies Policy
The ESO Cookies Policy may be subject to future updates, which will be made available on this page.
Additional information
For any queries related to cookies, please contact: pdprATesoDOTorg.
As ESO public webpages are managed by our Department of Communication, your questions will be dealt with the support of the said Department.