Inside NTT

Inside the dome of the 3.58-metre New Technology Telescope (NTT). The NTT has a lot of technological firsts, it was the first in the world to have a computer-controlled main mirror. The main mirror is flexible, and its shape is actively adjusted by actuators during observations to preserve the optimal image quality. This technology is called active optics and was developed by ESO. It is now applied to all major modern telescopes, such as the Very Large Telescope (VLT) at Cerro Paranal and the future Extremely Large Telescope (ELT).