EUROPE: The largest telescope in the world is set to begin its construction as announced on Wednesday, Nov. 11. Named as the Giant Magellan Telescope, this advanced optical device is said to be the pioneer in the new generation of supermassive telescopes.
The GMT will be built on a carefully-selected mountain at the Carnegie Institution for Science’s Las Campanas Observatory, located in the Atacama Desert in Chile. With the construction on going, it is estimated that the operations could commence as early as 2021. Workers will have to level a road to the summit, which measures about 8,366 feet. Scientists behind the telescope project said that they chose the said location due to its dark skies and excellent astronomical lucidity, adding that the desert is one of the leading locations in the world to study space.
The telescope, which will weigh about 1,100 tons, will generate images that are 10 times crisper and more defined than those produced by the Hubble Space Telescope. With this, it is possible that astronomers will be able to see the earliest events that occurred after the Big Bang, such as highly distant and ancient galaxies. Moreover, Earth-like planets and other small distortions created by black holes are anticipated to be discovered.
